Legionnaire’s Disease Claims 37th Victim
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LONDON — Britain’s recent outbreak of legionnaire’s disease claimed its 37th victim Wednesday, and six staff nurses at the hospital where the disease broke out have contracted the respiratory ailment, health officials said.
A spokesman from the Staffordshire Health Authority said an 80-year-old man became the 37th person to die of the disease since April 16.
Bacteria causing the outbreak at the Stafford General Hospital in central England were traced to contaminated water in the air-conditioning system.
Legionnaire’s disease was first recognized in July, 1976, when it killed 34 people at an American Legion convention in Philadelphia. Its symptoms are similar to severe influenza.
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