DAYTON — A seventh Miami Valley Hospital patient has contracted Legionnaires’ disease, a hospital spokeswoman said Wednesday.
Hospital and Montgomery County public health officials on Tuesday had confirmed that one patient diagnosed with Legionnaires’ disease — a Dayton man in his 70s — had died Feb. 21, and that two additional patients had contracted the disease, raising the total number of cases at the time to six.
The hospital announced the seventh case Wednesday afternoon.
The hospital said Legionella bacteria did not cause the man’s death. But the hospital declined to say if the disease was a contributing factor in the death, citing privacy concerns.
The hospital also said the physician filling out the man’s death certificate is not an employee of the hospital or its parent, Premier Health Partners.
The hospital said it has not yet received confirmation that Legionella bacteria had been present in the water system of its new patient tower. Another week could pass before those results are available.
Miami Valley instituted water restrictions in the new tower for three days last week after identifying the initial cluster of Legionnaires’ disease cases.
Legionnaires’ disease got its name in 1976, when high numbers of people attending an American Legion convention contracted the lung infection. Each year, 8,000 to 18,000 people are hospitalized with the disease in the U.S. It can cause death in 5 percent to 30 percent of cases, but often is treated successfully with antibiotics.
From Dayton Daily News