Is Legionnaires Disease Back again?
Possible Legionnaire's Outbreak Investigated At VA Hospital
POSTED: 5:25 pm EST December 27, 2007
UPDATED: 5:53 pm EST December 27, 2007
BRECKSVILLE, Ohio -- Cuyahoga County health officials are investigating a possible outbreak of Legionnaire's disease at the Brecksville veterans hospital.
At least three cases have been reported at the Louis Stokes Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center since November.
The pneumonia-like disease is caused by a bacteria found in warm-water environments.
Health officials have been working with the VA to assure they are following proper procedures with their water system.
Legionella, the bacteria that causes the disease, is not as rare as you might think, NewsChannel5's John Kosich reported.
"Studies have shown that up to 50 percent of large building facilities, including hospitals, has this bacteria in the water system," said Cuyahoga County Board of Health's Chris Kippes.
The key to getting rid of it is making sure water is heated to at least 140 degrees.
On average, there are 50 cases of Legionnaires reported in Cuyahoga County each year.
The tree people from the VA have all been treated and released.
Copyright 2007 by NewsNet5. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Friday, December 28, 2007
Legionnaire's disease at the Brecksville veterans hospital.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment