Water Safety and Legionella in Health Care: Priorities, Policy, and Practice.

Shantini D Gamage, Meredith Ambrose, Stephen M Kralovic, Gary A Roselle

Journal: Infectious disease clinics of North America 2017;30(3):689-712

PMID: 27515143

Full Text on Elsevier Science View on PubMed

Abstract

Health care facility water distribution systems have been implicated in the transmission of pathogens such as Legionella and nontuberculous mycobacteria to building occupants. These pathogens are natural inhabitants of water at low numbers and can amplify in premise plumbing water, especially if conditions are conducive to their growth. Because patients and residents in health care facilities are often at heightened risk for opportunistic infections, a multidisciplinary proactive approach to water safety is important to balance the various water priorities in health care and prevent water-associated infections in building occupants.

Published by Elsevier Inc.

Address: National Infectious Diseases Service, Specialty Care Services, Patient Care Services, Veterans Health Administration, Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), 810 Vermont Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20420, USA; Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, 3230 Eden Avenue, Cincinnati, OH 45267, USA. Electronic address: [email protected].; National Infectious Diseases Service, Specialty Care Services, Patient Care Services, Veterans Health Administration, Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), 810 Vermont Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20420, USA.; National Infectious Diseases Service, Specialty Care Services, Patient Care Services, Veterans Health Administration, Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), 810 Vermont Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20420, USA; Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Internal Medicine, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, 3230 Eden Avenue, Cincinnati, OH 45267, USA; Medical Service, Cincinnati VA Medical Center, 3200 Vine Street, Cincinnati, OH 45220, USA.

DOI: 10.1016/j.idc.2016.04.004

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MeSH Terms: Drinking Water, Health Facilities, Humans, Legionella, Legionellosis, Sanitary Engineering, Water Microbiology, Water Supply