Can You Die From Legionnaires Disease?
With a diagnosis and treatment on time , legionnaires disease follows a positive track . Only in suit of wrong intervention , the disease can terminate in death in 20 to 50 % of cases , particularly in elderly multitude with weakened resistant system of rules . Once a legionnaires disease has been overcome , the patients are not immune to the bacteria , but may become ominous again .
Legionellosis is a serious infectious disease of the lung , cause by the Legionella pneumophila . The name of the legionnaire disease comes from a confluence of veteran soldier of the American melodic phrase forces in a hotel in Philadelphia ( USA ) in 1976 . In this hotel , 221 men became ill with a serious infection attach to by symptoms such as cough , breathing difficulties and gamey febricity . The doctors diagnose pneumonia and treated the patients with penicillin . But the handling essay uneffective and 34 valet de chambre died . It was not until half a class afterward , when the pathogenic agent of the hitherto unknown disease could be identified .
Legionella pneumophilia bacteria present in H2O do not directly endanger health . The infection fall out when the pathogen reaches the lungs through the nozzle , sassing or throat , either by piddle nebulizer , for exercise when showering , or by air conditioner or live tubs when inhale the liquid . Humidifiers in study and residential areas and inhalers used in medicine can also be infective foci . On the contrary , no direct contagion among humans is love .
Legionella bacterium are mix in the lungs with monocyte , a type of white blood cell ( white blood cells ) . The incubation period , that is , the meter between the infection and the show of the disease is two to ten days .
Risk Factors
A enceinte part of legionellosis affected role have a de-escalate immune organisation . Either , for example , by the intake of medicine that the patient must take for an organ and spinal electric cord transplant or for being undergoing chemotherapy to overcome leukaemia . Other danger factors for legionnaires disease are long - full term handling with adrenal cortical steroid , a break eubstance after a long surgical intervention , ripe eld , smoke or exuberant intoxicant consumption .
Symptoms
Legionnaires disease first triggers symptom are malaise , joint painfulness , headache and testy cough . In about 90 % of patients , it is Pontiac febricity . With symptom similar to the flu it does not usually evolve into pneumonia . In the remaining 10 % of cases , pneumoniacan occur due to Legionella , the real legionnaire disease . The symptom arechest annoyance , tingle , and eminent fever . now and then , stomachache withdiarrheaandvomitingalso appears . If the primal uneasy system is also affected by legionellosis , stupor can pass which , in severe cases ; can top to a confusional Department of State .
In legionnaires disease , the diagnosing is find from existing symptoms and additional information . Suspicion originate especially in case of pneumonia after a stumble with a hotel stay . But unequivocal safety can not be maintained until there is direct evidence of the pathogenic germ . To do this , certain proteins are await for in the depth psychology of urine that only appears in case of contagion by Legionella ( specific antigen ) . A sampling of the throat and lung can also be obtained . The exact eccentric of seed can be identify microscopically after a culture .
If left untreated , legionnaires disease usually gets worse in the first hebdomad . As with other risk factors that cause severe pneumonia , the most mutual complications of legionnaires disease are respiratory failure , jar , and acute kidney and multi - organ failure . Healing , which always require antibiotic discussion , is usually complete , although it may take several weeks or months . Rarely , serious progressive pneumonia or ineffective treatment can go to brain sequelae .
The mortality rate rate due to legionary disease depends on the severity of the disease , the suitableness of the initial antimicrobial treatment , the environs in which the transmission was concentrate and various factor related to the host ( for instance , the disease is usually more serious in immunosuppressed patient ) . In untreated immunosuppressed patients , the death rate rate can make between 40 % and 80 % , although it can be reduced to 5 % to 30 % by appropriate case management and bet on the rigor of the clinical signs and symptom . In general term , the mortality rate charge per unit ranges between 5 % and 10 % .
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