BREAKING NEWS:

Nordic tourists acquire Legionnaires' disease in Thailand

Legionella may hinder trips to Phuket

PHUKET: -- Some of the winter holidaymakers who have booked their trips to Phuket through the Finnish travel operator Aurinkomatkat may have to cancel their vacation entirely or at least change their destination, as all hotels in Phuket are filled to capacity.

All Finns resident in the Grand Tropicana Hotel in Phuket are being transferred to other accommodation, and the popular beach resort hotel will not be used until it has been satisfactorily demonstrated whether or not dangerous Legionella bacteria are hiding in its water and air-conditioning systems.

It has been confirmed so far that four Nordic tourists aged 24 to 66 have contracted Legionnaires' disease after staying in the hotel.

In addition, a Finnish traveller who was resident at the hotel about a year ago evidently fell ill with the disease.

Furthermore, another Finn with a high temperature who recently returned from Phuket was being examined on Wednesday, but it could not be established whether or not he had Legionnaires' disease, and he was released from the hospital.

The water samples from the hotel have not been processed yet.

So far Aurinkomatkat has found new accommodation for about 140 travellers of the 300 Finns who were staying at the Grand Tropicana Hotel at the beginning of the week. Efforts are being made to find another hotel also for the remaining residents, says Tuomo Meretniemi from Aurinkomakat.

New holidaymakers are flying from Finland to Phuket almost every day. All of them are contacted personally prior to their departure in order to negotiate the hotel situation, Meretniemi reports.

Furthermore, Aurinkomatkat has sent letters to around 1,500 clients who have been resident in the hotel since November 20th, advising all persons who have fallen ill with fever of more than 38°C either during the trip or within 14 days after leaving the hotel to go to the doctor immediately. However, if the symptoms have already disappeared, there is no need to seek medical care.

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) monitors diseases contracted by the citizens of the European Union's member-states while travelling. The connection between the Legionella patients - the hotel in Phuket - was detected through the ECDC network. The centre also cooperates with the World Health Organisation WHO.

On Thursday, epidemiologist Tran Minh Nhu Nguyen from the National Public Health Institute participated in a phone conference organized by the ECDC. It was stated that even though the water samples taken at the hotel proved negative, there is no knowing whether or not the disease was contracted at that hotel. Hence the situation will take weeks, the epidemiologist predicts.

However, there is no need to cancel any trips to Thailand because of the outbreak of Legionnaires' disease, the Norwegian authorities have assured citizens.

--Helsingin Sanomat, FI 2007-01-13

Nordic tourists acquire Legionnaires' disease in Thailand

PHUKET: -- The transfers of hundreds of Finnish tourists have begun from a hotel in Phuket to other accommodation, following an outbreak of Legionnaires' disease in the popular beach resort hotel.

Two Finns, one Norwegian, and two Swedish tourists have fallen ill with pneumonia caused by Legionella bacteria, after having stayed at the Phuket Grand Tropicana Hotel in Patong Beach, Phuket. All had been resident at the hotel in the period since November 20th.

Legionnaires' disease does not necessarily cause any symptoms at all, while for patients in poor health the disease can be life-threatening.

The National Public Health Institute has recommended the Finnish travel operator Aurinkomatkat should transfer all its clients from the hotel as soon as possible. The hotel must not be used until the water and air-conditioning systems have been cleaned and appropriate certifications on the completion of the measures have been received.

The National Public Health Institute is urging all persons who have been resident in the hotel since November 20th and have fallen ill with fever of more than 38°C either during the trip or within 14 days after leaving the hotel to go to the doctor as soon as possible. However, if the symptoms have already disappeared, there is no need to seek medical care.

Pneumonia caused by Legionella bacterium can be fatal for the elderly with heart and lung conditions, says epidemiologist Tran Minh Nhu Nguyen from the National Public Health Institute.

The Grand Tropicana has a constant quota of 125 rooms for Finnish travellers, and currently, more than 300 tourists are being acccommodated at the hotel, reports Tom Selänniemi of Aurinkomatkat. Other accommodation has already been found for part of the guests, even though it is not an easy task with the Chinese New Year being celebrated soon.

According to Selänniemi, the travel agency has contacted all its customers who might have been at risk of having contracted the disease. Those who are leaving for Phuket soon have been offered alternative destinations, while the customer is also entitled to cancel the entire trip cost-free.

--Helsingin Sanomat, FI 2007-01-12 So what the hell is Legionnaires's disease then??? I understand what the news is about but still i dont know how dangerous this disease is or how you can tell if one got it! quoteThe Legionella bacteria is transmitted in water droplets, it is usually spread by the spray from water towers, and can grow in shower heads that sit with stagnant water in them and the spray is inhaled when the shower is turned on.

The highest incidence of Legionnaires Disease is in Hospitals. Legionnaires Disease is an opportunistic infection and usually attacks the very young, old and persons with a compromised immune system (sick people).

The bacterium can be present in the water pan in A/C units but the fan would need to blow the water in a spray to spread the bacteria. We add a bactericide tablet to all A/C systems we install and maintain, just as a precaution the tablet resolves slowly (over a years time) and also keeps the drain free of algae and smells as well as bacteria.

The good news is the infection is fairly easy to treat with readily available antibiotics, however you need to be looking for it and test for it, (a form of pneumonia)

There are many good articles on the CDC web site on Legionnaires Disease.

unquote 

Look here

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dbmd/diseaseinfo/legionellosis_g.htm

Or here

http://www.hse.gov.uk/legionnaires/

***cough*** ***cough***

it is dangerous, you can die from it!

I had Mononucleosis in Thailand last year.... why? cause one of my Supervisors had a Strep throat prior to my travel to thailand and I got it and I had been doing shift swaps prior to coming and not getting much time off and sleep, then I arrived Thailand and the symptoms hit me... great way to spend my time in Thailand from bringing a illness with me haha. Yet I didnt get anything from Thailand except tonsilitis once, but wait that was about 2 days after I arrived, it must have been my trip through Saudi Arabia.

That was at the news here in finland couple days ago. That hotel have had same kind of problems earlier, but they didnt do anything to it!? ...just wonder why Aurinkomatkat and other tour operators still use it??? anyway, legionella is not so dangereus, if you go to see doctor right away after get fever, but if you just let it be, you can die to it!

Started with the French foreign legion.They caught it off the camels.How, is still speculatory.....but well you know 1000 miles from home ,bit lonely......

It really fucks up your beer May...

The desease is partial to warm humid environments, and is hence named because it was first isolated when a group of people at an American Legion convention died from it. It's a very nasty bug that killed my wife when she contracted it from a hot tub in Cancun Mexico. The desease attacks the respritiary system. Hope this helps.