Legionella suspected of causing illness that killed 4 and sickened 7 in Argentina, health officials say
An illness that has stricken 11 people in Argentina, killing four, may have been the result of Legionella, the bacteria that causes Legionnaires’ disease,
An illness that has stricken 11 people in Argentina, killing four, may have been the result of Legionella, the bacteria that causes Legionnaires’ disease, health officials said Saturday.
Officials have been trying to determine what was causing the malady that had sickened 11 people linked to a private clinic in the city of San Miguel de Tucumán, roughly 670 miles north of Buenos Aires.
On Saturday, health officials said Legionella bacteria was identified in tests of four samples — three respiratory and a biopsy from one of the people who died.
“The suspicion is that it is an outbreak of legionella pneumophila,” Dr. Carla Vizzotti, the country’s health minister, said in a statement.
Data is still preliminary and pending final diagnosis, Vizzotti added.
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