Group from Elkhart, LaGrange counties exposed to Legionnaires' bacterium

Wednesday, March 24th 2004, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

SOUTH BEND, Ind. (AP) -- At least seven people from northern Indiana became ill after staying in a hotel in Oklahoma City where an outbreak of the bacterium that causes Legionnaires' disease was reported, an Oklahoma health official said.

The seven were among 13 people from Elkhart and LaGrange counties who were visiting Oklahoma last week for a home-school basketball tournament, Interim State Epidemiologist Dr. Kristy Bradley told the South Bend Tribune for a story Wednesday.

The seven who became ill had symptoms of Pontiac fever, a flu-like illness caused by the same pathogen that causes Legionnaire's disease, she said.

Bradley said two people were hospitalized and more than 50 reported flu-like symptoms after staying at the Comfort Suites at Interstate 40 and Meridian in Oklahoma City. Some of those who became ill belonged to a group from Houston, Bradley said.

It was not clear whether any of those who were hospitalized were members of the Indiana group, which health officials said included residents of Middlebury, Bristol, Howe and Shipshewanna.

Bradley said it appears those who came down with the illness were exposed at the hotel's pool and hot tub recreational area, which has been closed to the public since Saturday.

The outbreak came to light Saturday when members of the two teams became sick and had to forfeit some of their games.

Oklahoma state health officials interviewed 10 of the 13 Indiana residents before they left for the trip home, Bradley said. The remaining three were their family members.

State Health Commissioner Dr. Mike Crutcher said the diseases that can result from the bacterial infection include Legionnaire's disease, a severe infection in which persons develop pneumonia, and Pontiac fever, a milder illness that does not result in pneumonia. Crutcher said the symptoms reported by those who have become ill include a rapid onset of fever, chills, fatigue, headache and muscle aches, without pneumonia, leading officials to believe all of the cases are Pontiac fever.

Crutcher said the legionellosis infection is acquired by inhaling mists from a water source that contains Legionella bacteria and cannot be spread from person to person.

Peg Ramey of the Elkhart County Health Department said a local investigation to identify people who may have come into contact with those infected was not required because the disease is not spread from person to person.

--

Anyone who stayed at the hotel from March 12 to the present who develop fever and respiratory symptoms should contact the Oklahoma State Department of Health at (405) 271-4060.