Cook County Jail Inmate in Isolation After Testing Positive for Legionnaires' Disease

By Lorraine Swanson

Cook County, IL -- A Cook County Jail inmate was placed in isolation last Wednesday after he tested positive for Legionnaires’ disease.

Sheriff Tom Dart said in a news release that the inmate has been hospitalized since July 6 with pneumonia-like symptoms. Staff at Cermak Health Services, the jail’s hospital, notified Dart’s office on Wednesday of the positive diagnosis.

Jail officials said the man’s illness appears to be an isolated case of Legionnaire’s disease. Neither his cell mate nor other detainees or staff on his living unit or in his division have developed symptoms of the illness.
Fellow detainees on the tier have been moved “out of an abundance of caution” until further notice, the news release said.

Dart has directed theCook County Department of Facilities Management and the Cook County Health and Hospital Systems to immediately identify the source of the bacteria. Legionnaire’s disease is a severe form of pneumonia which is caused by waterborne bacteria known as legionella.

According to the Centers for Disease Control the disease is not spread from person-to-person contact. The disease is generally spread by inhalation of water that contains the bacteria. Most healthy people exposed to the bacteria do not get sick.

People who are most susceptible to the bacterial disease include older adults, smokers and persons with weakened immune systems. All staff that work in the division where the detainee was housed are being notified and encouraged to consult with their personal physician.

According to the CDC, less than 5 percent of people exposed to the bacteria develop Legionnaires’ disease. The detainee is reportedly doing well and being treated at Stroger Hospital.