First sporadic cases of non-pneumonic legionellosis, Pontiac fever in Japan

Intern Med. 1998 Dec;37(12):1068-71. doi: 10.2169/internalmedicine.37.1068.

Abstract

Pontiac fever has rarely been found in sporadic cases. Here, we report the first sporadic cases of non-pneumonic legionellosis, Pontiac fever in Japan. Case 1. A 53-year-old man with spinocerebellar degeneration was presented to our hospital. He had an acute onset of high fever and consciousness disturbance. A chest X-ray film on admission was normal, but transient bilateral pleural effusions were revealed on hospital day 14. Case 2. A 77-year-old woman with gastric ulcer was presented to our hospital. She had an acute onset of high fever. A chest X-ray film on admission was normal, but transient bilateral pleural effusions were revealed on hospital day 7. High fever, resistant to beta-lactam antibiotics, continued in both cases. Both had serologic confirmation of legionellosis by indirect fluorescent antibody assay for Legionella pneumophila without seroconversion for Mycoplasma pneumoniae, and Chlamydia pneumoniae, and had a good prognosis. Both were thought to be sporadic community-acquired cases rather than epidemics.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Acute Disease
  • Aged
  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / administration & dosage
  • Anti-Bacterial Agents / therapeutic use
  • Antibodies, Bacterial / analysis*
  • Diagnosis, Differential
  • Female
  • Fever / diagnosis
  • Fever / drug therapy
  • Fever / epidemiology
  • Fever / microbiology*
  • Fluorescent Antibody Technique, Indirect
  • Humans
  • Injections, Intravenous
  • Japan / epidemiology
  • Lactams
  • Legionella / immunology*
  • Legionellosis / diagnosis
  • Legionellosis / drug therapy
  • Legionellosis / epidemiology
  • Legionellosis / microbiology*
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Pleural Effusion / diagnosis
  • Pleural Effusion / drug therapy
  • Pleural Effusion / microbiology

Substances

  • Anti-Bacterial Agents
  • Antibodies, Bacterial
  • Lactams