Outbreak of Legionnaires' disease in Glasgow Royal Infirmary: microbiological aspects.
The bacteriological investigation of an outbreak of Legionnaires' disease in Glasgow Royal Infirmary affecting 16 patients is described. Most of the patients had been treated in high-dependency areas on two floors of the hospital supplied by the same two air-conditioned ventilation systems. The source of infection was traced to contamination of a cooling tower from which a plume of spray discharged into the intake vents of the two ventilation systems. Rubber grommets within the cooling tower probably provided a nidus of infection there. The control and management of the outbreak are discussed: a policy of frankness about the course and progress of the investigations was adopted and helped to allay anxiety on the part of both staff and media.
D000389:Air Conditioning; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000032:analysis; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000453:epidemiology*; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D004866:Equipment Contamination; D005455:Fluorescent Antibody Technique; D006801:Humans; D007875:Legionella / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D007877:Legionnaires' Disease / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology; D012606:Scotland; D014691:Ventilation; D014871:Water Microbiology
D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial