Detection of Legionella from Teaching Hospital Cooling Tower Water of Air Conditioning Systems in Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia

The objective of this study was to investigate the frequency of contamination of Legionella in the King Fahd Hospital of the University (KFHU) cooling tower water of air conditioning system and other water supplies. A total of 300 samples were collected from various sites in KFHU. Water samples were collected from the cooling tower (88), hot-shower head (40), cold-shower head (59), engineering building (12) and drinking fountain (12). Swab samples were also collected from shower heads (44) and air ventilator (45). Overall Legionella was detected in only 5 (5.68%) out of 88 water samples and yielded 7 isolates. All other water samples that were collected from other sites were negative for the presence of Legionella. Culturing the hospital water supply for Legionella was the first step in the assessment of the risk for hospital-acquired Legionnaires’ (LD). Legionella is a common cause of hospital-acquired pneumonia, especially for immunocompromised patients.