Legionellosis can present as two types of illness: Legionnaires’ (LEE-juh-nares) disease and Pontiac fever. The two illnesses can be diagnosed with similar tests, but are treated differently.

Legionnaires’ disease is a serious type of pneumonia (lung infection) frequently requiring hospitalization, whereas Pontiac fever is a less serious illness that is self-limiting and does not require treatment. People can get sick with Legionnaire's disease or Pontiac fever when they breathe in mist or accidently swallow water into the lungs containing Legionella (LEE-juh-nell-a) bacteria.

Access materials including slides from our recent conference “Testing the Waters: Legionella Prevention and Control in Healthcare Facilities”

CDC one pagers

• Legionnaire’s disease fact sheet
• How Legionella affects building water systems and people
• Effective water management programs can reduce the risk of Legionnaire’s disease
• One healthcare facility’s Legionnaire’s disease story and what happens next

CDC Vital signs

• Fact sheet on using water management programs in building to help prevent outbreaks, June 2016
• MMWR Vital Signs: Deficiencies in Environmental Control Identified in Outbreaks of Legionnaire’s Disease – North America, 2000-2014, June 2016
• Fact sheet on Legionnaire’s disease and healthcare facilities, June 2017
• MMWR: Vital Signs: Health Care-Associated Legionnaire’s Disease Surveillance Data from 20 States and a Large Metropolitan Area —United States, 2015, June 2017

CDC Tools

• CDC toolkit: Developing a Water Management Program to Reduce Legionella Growth and Spread in Buildings
• CDC environmental assessment tool
• Healthcare Facility Water Management Program Checklist

Other tools

• Water management program template

Other resources

• Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Memo: Requirement to Reduce Legionella Risk in Healthcare Facility Water Systems to Prevent Cases and Outbreaks of Legionnaire’s Disease- Revised 6/9/2017