Isolation of Legionella pneumophila from hospital potable water specimens: comparison of direct plating with guinea pig inoculation

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Abstract
Eighty-five potable water samples were analyzed for the presence of Legionella pneumophila by direct plating and by guinea pig inoculation methods. Direct plating methods utilized antimicrobial-containing media with and without acid treatment of specimens before inoculation. Thirty-three specimens were culture positive for L. pneumophila by one or both techniques. A total of 14 specimens were positive for L. pneumophila by direct plating only, and 2 specimens were positive for L. pneumophila by guinea pig inoculation only. The sensitivity of direct plating is significantly greater than that of guinea pig inoculation when isolating L. pneumophila from potable water (P less than 0.01).