LEGIONELLA INFECTION: INTRODUCTION

Legionellosis refers to the two clinical syndromes caused by bacteria of the genus Legionella. Pontiac fever is an acute, febrile, self-limited illness that has been serologically linked to Legionella species, whereas Legionnaires’ disease is the designation for pneumonia caused by these species. Legionnaires’ disease was first recognized in 1976, when an outbreak of pneumonia took place at a hotel in Philadelphia during the American Legion Convention. The causative agent proved to be a newly discovered bacterium, Legionella pneumophila, that was isolated from lung specimens obtained from the victims at autopsy.