HC Deb 21 February 1989 vol 147 cc611-2W
Ms. Walley

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if he will give details of all epidemiological research undertaken by the public health laboratory service in respect of legionnaire's disease.

Mr. Freeman

Public health laboratory service epidemiological research on legionnaire's disease began in 1977, the year the legionnella pneumophila was first described in the USA. Early work by the PHLS included the development of an active national surveillance system, methods of diagnosis and the detection of legionellae in environmental samples. Much of the epidemiological research has been directed at studying sources of infection and routes of transmission during the investigation of outbreaks of legionnaire's disease detected by the surveillance system. This work has been accompanied by the development and evaluation of control methods.

I am placing in the Library two lists which give detailed references to published research on this subject carried out by the PHLS.

List 1 covers papers describing work mainly of an epidemiological nature. List 2 deals with closely related and overlapping work on serological method, typing of the organism for epidemiological purposes, experimental studies of transmission and studies of the ecology and control of legionellae in water systems.