Legionella Exposure Risks and Preventing Pontiac Fever and Legionnaires’ Disease

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) describes Pontiac fever as a mild respiratory disease that gets better without treatment. It is caused by a type of bacteria known as Legionella. Unfortunately, exposure to Legionella can also cause Legionnaires’ disease, a serious and potentially deadly infection.

Legionella can be found in natural, freshwater environments. Water containing the bacteria can spread in a mist or droplets small enough to be inhaled. Less commonly, people can get sick by aspiration of drinking water containing Legionella.

The CDC warns that Legionella can become a health concern when it grows and spreads in human-made building water systems. These may include:

• Showerheads and sink faucets
• Hot tubs
• Decorative fountains and water features
• Hot water tanks and heaters
• Large, complex plumbing systems
• Cooling towers

The agency also shares that it usually takes between a few hours to 3 days after being exposed to Legionella bacteria to develop Pontiac fever symptoms. The illness is generally milder than Legionnaires’ disease, and someone with Pontiac fever doesn’t have pneumonia. Symptoms usually last less than 1-week and mostly include fever and muscle aches.

“Legionellosis refers to the two disease presentations, Pontiac fever and Legionnaires’ disease. Building owners and managers need proactive education on Legionellosis and a well-developed prevention and response plan before an outbreak occurs,” said Derrick A. Denis, Senior Vice President for Clark Seif Clark. “Understand the water supply is not expected to be sterile, and the water delivered from the municipal water provider contains some concentration of Legionella disease bacteria (LDB) along with various other microorganisms. The goal of a building operator is not to prevent microorganisms from entering your building; it is to control them at concentrations acceptable to the risk tolerance of your populations and organization.” Mr. Denis went on to say, “Preventative maintenance (PM) directed by a functional water management program (WMP) go a long way towards ensuring the quality of water in your plumbing systems. That same WMP should contain preplanned emergency response actions in the event of a suspected case, confirmed case or cases, or a Legionellosis outbreak at your facility.”

The infection control, industrial hygiene, and environmental professionals at CSC are dedicated to helping hospitals, long-term care centers, businesses, and other clients develop, administer, and monitor water management programs. These services, along with proactive education, monitoring, and testing, can help to prevent outbreaks. If an outbreak has already occurred, these resources can be instrumental in quickly identifying the source of Legionella to prevent further infections. CSC has also sponsored an educational video about Pontiac fever and Legionella exposure risks that can be seen at: https://youtu.be/YaWWLPBqYrI

To learn more about this or other infection control, building science, or industrial hygiene services, please visit www.csceng.com, email csc@csceng.com, or call 800-807-1118.

About Clark Seif Clark, Inc. (CSC)
Since 1996, CSC has helped clients in both the public and private sectors address indoor air quality, occupational health, and environmental, health, and safety (EH&S) issues. CSC is a leading provider of these services with multiple offices along the western seaboard and southwest. The company believes in science-based protocols and has a strong background in engineering, making them the preferred environmental consultants to industrial clients, healthcare facilities, architects, schools, builders, contractors, developers, and real estate professionals.

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