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What you need to know about Legionnaires' disease

Indianapolis Star - 2/8/2021

Nancy McKinney of Indianapolis battled a severe and devastating form of Legionnaires' disease which rapidly attacked her lungs and left her clinging to life. She survived, but the aftereffects were life-changing.

McKinney, 65, is a quadruple amputee, having lost both her lower legs and hands in 2019 to the disease. Doctors still don't know how she contracted the disease. It might have been from the water misting produce at the grocery store. Or from an air conditioning system.

IndyStar recently featured her story, which McKinney hopes opens the eyes of many to the disease and its effects.

Causes two conditions

Legionellosis is an infection caused by Legionella pneumophila bacteria. The disease can result in two different medical conditions, according to Indiana University School of Medicine. The first is Legionnaires' disease, a severe respiratory illness with pneumonia that may lead to hospitalization or death. Symptoms usually start about two to 10 days after exposure.

The second disease is Pontiac fever. Pontiac fever is a milder respiratory illness without pneumonia. Symptoms of Pontiac fever usually start about 24 to 72 hours after exposure.

Discovery

Legionella was first discovered in 1976, after an outbreak among 4,000 people who went to a three-day convention of the American Legion in Philadelphia. Three days after the convention was over, Ray Brennan, a 61-year-old bookkeeper for the American Legion, had died. Days later, 221 Legionnaires, as they were called, were sick and 34 were dead. It was one of the worst U.S. medical tragedies of the 20th century.

Risk

The disease, in both forms, can occur in people of any age, including those who have healthy immune systems, according to IU. But, Legionnaires' disease most often occurs in people middle aged or older, people who smoke or those who have weakened immune systems and underlying medical conditions.

Spread

Legionnaires' disease is transmitted when a person breathes water droplets from the air, mist or vapor that contain the Legionella bacteria, IU says. The bacteria are not spread from person to person.

Symptoms

The most common signs of the disease are fever, chills, lack of energy, cough, muscle aches, headache, loss of appetite, diarrhea and vomiting.

Other cases: Legionnaires' outbreak linked to hot tub display at North Carolina fair claims fourth fatality

More: Negligence caused a Legionnaires' outbreak at Atlanta hotel, lawsuit says

Treatment

For Legionnaire’s disease, antibiotics are sometimes used for treatment, as well as breathing therapy. Recovery from Pontiac fever often occurs within a week and does not benefit from antibiotics.

Hospitalizations

Each year, between 8,000 and 18,000 people need care in a hospital due to Legionnaires' disease.

Amputation

Legionnaires' disease does not directly cause the need for limbs to be amputated. Lack of oxygen to outer limbs, caused by the disease's attack on the lungs, can result in tissue death in outer extremities, requiring amputation.

It can be deadly

About 1 out of every 10 people who gets sick with Legionnaires' disease will die due to complications from their illness, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. For those who get Legionnaires' disease during a stay in a healthcare facility, about 1 out of every 4 will die.

Sources: IU School of Medicine, Mayo Clinic and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Follow IndyStar sports reporter Dana Benbow on Twitter: @DanaBenbow. Reach her via email: dbenbow@indystar.com.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: What you need to know about Legionnaires' disease

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