Veterans Administration officials have said that two patients being treated at the Pittsburgh VA Medical Center in O’Hara have tested positive for Legionella, according to Tribune-Review news partner WTAE-TV.
The water lines at the facility have been treated, flushed and tested to make sure they are safe for people to use, officials said. The treatment was done out of an abundance of caution.
Legionella is found naturally in freshwater and is especially prevalent in the Northeast and Midwest.
The Centers of Disease Control said that the Legionella bacteria can cause Legionnaires’ disease, which is a serious type of pneumonia. People can get Legionnaires’ disease by breathing in mist containing Legionella bacteria, but in general, it isn’t spread person to person, the CDC said.
The disease is treatable with antibiotics.
The Pittsburgh VA Medical Center is operating normally. Patient care has not been interrupted, officials told WTAE-TV.
“The Pittsburgh VA Medical Center continuously monitors its water supply for Legionella and has not identified Legionella in the water in several years,” a spokesperson with the VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System said.
Shelly Nulph, a spokeswoman for the Pittsburgh VA Medical Center, could not be reached for comment Thursday night.