Legionnaires' disease as an occupational risk related to decontamination work after the Fukushima nuclear disaster: a case report

• Published in: Journal of Occupational Health Vol. 60; no. 6; pp. 527 - 528
• Main Authors: Sawano, Toyoaki, Tsubokura, Masaharu, Ozaki, Akihiko, Leppold, Claire, Kato, Shigeaki, Kambe, Toshiyuki
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Australia Japan Society for Occupational Health 01-11-2018; JAPAN SOCIETY FOR OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH; John Wiley & Sons, Inc
• Subjects: Case reports; Decontamination; Decontamination worker; Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident; Health risks; Legionellosis; Letter to the Editor; Nuclear accidents; Occupational health; Decontamination worker; Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident; Legionellosis
• ISSN: 1341-9145; 1348-9585; 1348-9585
• DOI: 10.1539/joh.2018-0180-LTE

We sincerely appreciate the comments from Yoshida regarding our case report of Legionnaires' disease (LD) in a patient engaged in decontamination work in Fukushima. As indicated, it is well-known that the white-blood-cell count does not commonly rise above 10,000 in patients with atypical pneumonia. However, this clinical feature presumably reflects pneumonias caused by Mycoplasma pneumoniae, which is the most common causal bacteria in atypical pneumonia. In some previous reports, the white-blood-cell count among patients with LD becomes as highly elevated as it does in other types of bacterial pneumonia (i.e., over 10,000), consistent with our clinical experience.