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Published on: February 15, 2013
Legionnaires' disease in Nottingham, England
Annals of Internal Medicine
|April 1, 1979
Summary
Legionnaires' disease, a severe pneumonia, was identified in England in 1977. Investigations found no clear infection source or patient contact, suggesting sporadic outbreaks of this bacterial pneumonia.
Area of Science:
- Medical Microbiology
- Infectious Diseases
- Epidemiology
Background:
- Legionnaires' disease (LD) bacterium identified as cause of severe pneumonia in Nottingham, England, 1977.
- 41 cases identified across England, representing half of national cases.
- Sporadic nature of cases with no identified source or patient-to-patient transmission.
Purpose of the Study:
- Investigate the cause and epidemiology of severe pneumonia cases in England.
- Determine potential sources and transmission patterns of the identified Legionnaires' disease bacterium.
- Explore antigenic relationships between different strains of the bacterium.
Main Methods:
- Laboratory identification of Legionnaires' disease bacterium.
- Epidemiological investigation of patient cases across multiple English regions.
- Serological sampling of the population in Nottingham.
- Antigenic analysis using guinea-pig antisera against lung extracts.
Main Results:
- No common source of infection identified for the 41 sporadic cases.
- Limited international travel reported among affected individuals.
- Low prevalence of antibodies to the Pontiac antigen in the Nottingham population.
- Evidence of antigenic relationship between isolates and the Pontiac strain, but not the Togus strain.
Conclusions:
- The identified Legionnaires' disease bacterium caused severe pneumonia in England in 1977.
- The sporadic nature and lack of transmission suggest environmental or unidentified sources.
- Strain variation may exist, as indicated by antigenic differences between isolates.
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