Legionnaires' disease in Israel: a serological study of hemodialysis patients

A serological survey was performed in three Israeli hospitals in order to evaluate the risk of nosocomial spread of the agent of Legionnaires' Disease or antigenically related organisms. Five out of 79 chronic hemodialysis patients had titers (1:512 to 1:2,048) of indirect immunofluorescence antibodies considered indicative of past infection. None of 44 healthy subjects, 37 ambulatory patients or 16 patients with acute gram-negative sepsis due to unrelated organisms showed a seroreaction of greater than or equal to 1:128.