Legionella pneumonia

Legionella pneumonia is a systemic disease caused mainly by pneumonia. There are 40 species of Legionella. The clinical isolates are mostly Legionella pneumophila, followed by L micdadei, and others are rare. It is a Gram-negative bacillus, but it is lighter in color. Strictly aerobic bacteria, special nutritional requirements are required in the initial isolation and culture. Special selective media containing antibiotics, cysteine, and iron, such as activated carbon yeast agar medium (CYE) and BCYE-medium, are required. Adjusting the accurate pH value of the culture medium, a certain concentration of CO2 environment (2.5% to 5%) and the culture time (at least 5 days) are the keys to ensure the success of bacterial culture and isolation. The clinical laboratory has a very low detection rate of this bacteria, and most of them diagnose the disease based on the measurement of serum antibodies.

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