The Ministry of Health is investigating an outbreak of legionella in Las Torres de Cotillas that adds up to three people affected, according to the information available so far. Specifically, they are three women aged 50, 52 and 83 years. The 52-year-old patient is admitted to the Morales Meseguer hospital, although with a “good prognosis”, according to Health sources.
The Ministry’s technicians have already begun “epidemiological and environmental investigations, with sampling at the homes and in the surroundings of the affected people to determine the origin of the outbreak, which is still under study.”
In short, there is still no confirmed focus, pending the inquiries of the Health technicians to find the origin of the outbreak.
Legionella is a bacterium that can cause a condition characterized by pneumonia, high fever, and difficulty breathing. Legionellosis is more common in summer, since the bacteria live in stagnant water with temperatures generally above 35 degrees.
Hence the prevention work that is usually carried out in public fountains and also in the refrigeration systems of public buildings.
65 cases in 2022
Last year, Salud detected 65 cases of legionellosis in the Region of Murcia, compared to 74 in 2021 and 72 in 2020. The largest outbreak recorded to date in the Region of Murcia and throughout Spain took place in the city of Murcia in July 2001, with more than 800 suspected cases, of which about 500 were confirmed. There were four deaths. The investigation determined the origin in the cooling towers of the Morales Meseguer.
The bacteria that cause legionellosis survive in stagnant water, in warm and humid environments. The largest source of transmission for people is the water and air conditioning systems of large buildings. If the bacteria travel in aerosols (tiny droplets) from these cooling towers, they can be inhaled and reach the lungs.
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