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Legionella spp. in UK composts--a potential public health issue?
[legionellosis]
Over
the
past
5
years
,
a
number
of
cases
of
legionellosis
in
Scotland
have
been
associated
with
compost
use
;
however
,
studies
investigating
sources
of
infection
other
than
water
systems
remain
limited
.
This
study
delivers
the
first
comprehensive
survey
of
composts
commonly
available
in
the
UK
for
the
presence
of
Legionella
species
.
Twenty
-
two
store-bought
composts
,
one
green-waste
compost
and
one
home-made
compost
were
tested
for
Legionella
by
culture
methods
on
BCYE-α
medium
,
and
the
findings
were
confirmed
by
macrophage
infectivity
potentiator
(
mip
)
speciation
.
Twenty
-
two
of
the
samples
were
retested
after
an
enrichment
period
of
8
weeks
.
In
total
,
15
of
24
composts
tested
positive
for
Legionella
species
,
a
higher
level
of
contamination
than
previously
seen
in
Europe
.
Two
isolates
of
Legionella
pneumophila
were
identified
,
and
Legionella
longbeachae
serogroup
1
was
found
to
be
one
of
the
most
commonly
isolated
species
.
L
.
longbeachae
infection
would
not
be
detected
by
routine
Legionella
urinary
antigen
assay
,
so
such
testing
should
not
be
used
as
the
sole
diagnostic
technique
in
atypical
pneumonia
cases
,
particularly
where
there
is
an
association
with
compost
use
.
The
occurrence
of
Legionella
in
over
half
of
the
samples
tested
indicates
that
compost
could
pose
a
public
health
risk
.
The
addition
of
general
hygiene
warnings
to
compost
packages
may
be
beneficial
in
protecting
public
health
.
