Abstract
Respiratory secretions from patients with clinically suspected Legionnaires pneumonia were examined by direc immunofluorescent tests at the Medical Center Hospital of Vermont and at the Center for Disease Control. No fluorescent bacteria were found by either laboratory in eight specimens from eight patients who were seronegative. Twenty specimens were obtained from seven patients who had serologically confirmed Legionnaires disease. Four of the seven cases were identified at the Medical Center Hospital of Vermont, and six of the seven were identified at the Center for Disease Control. Of 20 specimens, 8 were positive at the Center for Disease Control (six or more bacilli per slide), and 7 specimens were suspicious (one to five bacilli per slide); at the Medical Center Hospital of Vermont, 4 of 20 specimens were positive, and 2 were suspicious. The inclusion of a rhodamine-conjugated counterstain at the Center for Disease Control facilitated the examination and may have improved the sensitivity. Smears from transtracheal aspirates, bronchoscopic aspirates, transcutaneous lung aspirates, pleural fluids, and tracheal aspirate-expectorated sputum produced positive results. Several specimens contained fluorescing bacilli when stained for serogroup 2 as well as serogroup 1, perhaps reflecting the presence of cross-reacting antigens in vivo.
Full text
PDF
Selected References
These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.
- Beaty H. N., Miller A. A., Broome C. V., Goings S., Phillips C. A. Legionnaires' disease in Vermont, May to October 1977. JAMA. 1978 Jul 14;240(2):127–131. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Brenner D. J., Steigerwalt A. G., McDade J. E. Classification of the Legionnaires' disease bacterium: Legionella pneumophila, genus novum, species nova, of the family Legionellaceae, familia nova. Ann Intern Med. 1979 Apr;90(4):656–658. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-90-4-656. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Broome C. V., Cherry W. B., Winn W. C., Jr, MacPherson B. R. Rapid diagnosis of Legionnaires' disease by direct immunofluorescent staining. Ann Intern Med. 1979 Jan;90(1):1–4. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-90-1-1. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Cherry W. B., Pittman B., Harris P. P., Hebert G. A., Thomason B. M., Thacker L., Weaver R. E. Detection of Legionnaires disease bacteria by direct immunofluorescent staining. J Clin Microbiol. 1978 Sep;8(3):329–338. doi: 10.1128/jcm.8.3.329-338.1978. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Edelstein P. H., Meyer R. D., Finegold S. M. Isolation of a new serotype of legionnaires' disease bacterium. Lancet. 1978 Dec 2;2(8101):1172–1174. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(78)92154-2. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Feeley J. C., Gorman G. W., Weaver R. E., Mackel D. C., Smith H. W. Primary isolation media for Legionnaires disease bacterium. J Clin Microbiol. 1978 Sep;8(3):320–325. doi: 10.1128/jcm.8.3.320-325.1978. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Fraser D. W., Tsai T. R., Orenstein W., Parkin W. E., Beecham H. J., Sharrar R. G., Harris J., Mallison G. F., Martin S. M., McDade J. E. Legionnaires' disease: description of an epidemic of pneumonia. N Engl J Med. 1977 Dec 1;297(22):1189–1197. doi: 10.1056/NEJM197712012972201. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Gump D. W., Frank R. O., Winn W. C., Jr, Foster R. S., Jr, Broome C. V., Cherry W. B. Legionnaires' disease in patients with associated serious disease. Ann Intern Med. 1979 Apr;90(4):538–542. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-90-4-538. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Kirby B. D., Snyder K. M., Meyer R. D., Finegold S. M. Legionnaires' disease: clinical features of 24 cases. Ann Intern Med. 1978 Sep;89(3):297–309. doi: 10.7326/0003-4819-89-3-297. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- Lattimer G. L., McCrone C., Galgon J. Diagnosis of Legionnaires' disease from transtracheal aspirate by direct fluorescent-antibody staining and isolation of the bacterium. N Engl J Med. 1978 Nov 23;299(21):1172–1173. doi: 10.1056/NEJM197811232992106. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
- McKinney R. M., Thomason B. M., Harris P. P., Thacker L., Lewallen K. R., Wilkinson H. W., Hebert G. A., Moss C. W. Recognition of a new serogroup of Legionnaires disease bacterium. J Clin Microbiol. 1979 Jan;9(1):103–107. doi: 10.1128/jcm.9.1.103-107.1979. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]