NEW MEASURES FOR REDUCING LEGIONELLA IN HOT WATER SYSTEMS
Legionnaires’ disease, a severe pneumonia caused by Legionella bacteria, has become a growing challenge in Denmark and other European countries. A comprehensive Danish project on Legionella in domestic hot water systems has developed and demonstrated three innovative solutions to minimize the problem.
Denmark has had a relatively higher disease prevalence than in most other European countries. As a result, there has been a specific focus on the problem in Denmark. It is generally recognized that relatively low domestic hot water temperatures may have contributed to this. The low temperature allows the growth of Legionella, and the bacteria may spread to humans in small water particles (aerosols) from, e.g., showers. Approximately two-thirds of Danish homes - and the associ- ated domestic hot water - are heated with district heating. As for the rest of the households, heat pumps are gaining
Legionnaires’ disease is a severe form of pneumonia caused by the Legionella bacteria. According to ECDC (The European Center for Disease Prevention and Control), there has been an increase in Europe in the incidence and number of deaths from Legionnaires’ disease since the early 2000s. In 2022, the incidence rate per 100,000 inhabitants reached 2.6, com- pared to approximately 1.3 in 2005, as the graph below indi- cates. The significant growth in the incidence occurred around 2016-2018. Coinciding with the rise in incidence, there has been a corre- sponding increase in the number of deaths from Legionnaires’ disease in the EU/EEA. Deaths rose from around 350 in 2005 to nearly 800 in 2022.
Source: https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/surveillance-atlas-infectious-diseases Graph showing the incidence per 100000 of Legionnaires' disease year 2006-2022
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