Legionnaires' disease in an immunocompetent young adult.
Infection with Legionella pneumophila (LP) is a rare cause of pneumonia in previously healthy young adults. Pleural effusion is relatively common in Legionnaires' disease but is usually clinically insignificant. Herein we describe an immunocompetent, 19-year-old female with LP respiratory infection that presented with pleural effusion and mild interstitial infiltrates in the lower lungs. She received 3 weeks' treatment with erythromycin and rifampin and recovered completely. Diagnosis was based on serology testing with a four-fold rise of the antibody titer in the acute and convalescent phase. Legionnaires' disease should be considered in the differential diagnosis of culture-negative pleural effusion in immunocompetent young adults.
Tsai
H C
HC
Section of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital, Kaohsiung, National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan.
Lee
S S
SS
Lin
W R
WR
Huang
C K
CK
Chen
Y S
YS
Wann
S R
SR
Lin
H H
HH
Yen
M Y
MY
Liu
Y C
YC
D000328:Adult; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007877:Legionnaires' Disease / Q000150:complications* / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy; D010996:Pleural Effusion / Q000209:etiology