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CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Journal of Health and Allied Sciences NU 2022; 12(02): 168-174
DOI: 10.1055/s-0041-1731863
DOI: 10.1055/s-0041-1731863
Review Article
Advances in Environmental Detection and Clinical Diagnostic Tests for Legionella Species
Authors
Abstract
Legionella is a fastidious organism that is difficult to culture in the lab but is widely distributed in environmental, domestic, and hospital settings. The clinical manifestations due to Legionella infections range from mild fever to fatal pneumonia and multiorgan pathologies. Legionella outbreaks though prevalent globally are not reported in developing countries due to difficulties in isolating this organism and the lack of simple diagnostic protocols. Here, we review the literature from across countries to present various methods used to detect Legionella from environmental and clinical samples. We compare the sensitivity and the specificity of the conventional culture-based assays with the recent methods and discuss approaches to develop better detection and diagnostic tests. With better cost-effective detection techniques and regular monitoring of the susceptible sites, which may harbor Legionella colonies, most of the Legionella infections can be prevented. As a result, considerable burden, caused by Legionella infections, on the healthcare system, in especially economically weaker countries, can be mitigated.
Keywords
extrapulmonary infection - iron - Legionella - Legionella-contaminated aerosol - Legionnaires diseases - Pontiac fever - water distribution systemPublication History
Article published online:
30 July 2021
© 2021. Nitte (Deemed to be University). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)
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