Legionellosis - It is a type of branchopneumonia. Actually two types of syndromes occur;
(a) Pontiac fever - a self limiting, non-fatal disease. Symptoms include fever, chill, dry cough and headache.
(b) Legionaires disease - severe branchopneumonia, fatal. Characteristic symptoms are fever chills, dry cough, vomiting and diarrhoea. Legionella pneumophila is the causative agent. It occurs in natural water. At times it enters and proliferates in cooling tower, air cooler and shower bath. Spraying and splashing of water containing pathogen may produce aerosols which are disseminated in air.
