Legionella In Water Linked To Deaths At Hospital

Two people died this month in connection to Legionella-tainted water at a medical center in Seattle, WA.

Legionella bacteria were discovered in an ice machine and two sinks at the University of Washington Medical Center, according to KIRO 7. King County Public Health officials are investigating the incident. The bacteria can cause Legionnaire’s Disease, a severe and often fatal form of pneumonia that can spread through the water system.

“Two people who received care in the cardiac unit died with contributing factors of Legionella bacteria,” the report said.

“Legionnaires’ disease typically occurs when people breathe in mist or vapor contaminated with the bacteria. Healthy people who are exposed don’t usually get sick, but those who are older than 50, current or former smokers or who have weakened immune systems are more vulnerable,” The Seattle Times reported.

Along with the two people who died, the outbreak affected other patients. “A fourth patient at University of Washington Medical Center was infected with Legionella bacteria in the ongoing Legionnaires' disease outbreak at the Seattle-based hospital, officials discovered [last week],” Becker’s Hospital Review reported.

Most cases of Legionnaires’ disease in the U.S. occur “in private homes with no common link other than their water supply, underscoring that drinking water distribution systems are the ultimate source of outbreaks,” Chemical & Engineering News reported.

In addition, “bacteria that cause Legionnaires’ disease have been detected in University of Washington Medical devices used to heat and cool patients during heart surgery, the same type of machines linked to different types of deadly outbreaks in other hospitals,” The Seattle Times reported, noting that three heater-cooler units tested positive.

The developments mark that first time Legionella bacteria may have spread this way, although no decisive link to patient illness has been confirmed. “Legionnaires’ disease has not been previously proven to be transmitted in this fashion,” Tina Mankowski, a UW Medicine spokeswoman, said in a statement.

“We thoroughly cleaned and sanitized [the heater-cooler units] and took them out of service as an additional precautionary measure,” Mankowski said.

For similar stories visit Water Online’s Drinking Water Contaminant Removal Solutions Center.