European Advice and Guidance

Guidelines for control and prevention of travel associated Legionnaires’ disease

European Guidelines for Control and Prevention of Travel Associated Legionnaires’ Disease (PDF, 283 KB) Procedures for responding to travel associated cases of Legionnaires' disease, introduced by the European Working Group for Legionella Infections (EWGLI).

* Note: The 2005 version of the guidelines, available here, pre-dates the transfer of the management of the European Legionnaires' Disease Surveillance Network (now known as ELDSNet), in April 2010, from the HPA (London) to ECDC (Stockholm). It would therefore be prudent to discuss any concerns or apparent inconsistencies between the guideline and current practice with ELDSNet - ELDSNet@ecdc.europa.eu. A revision of the guidelines is currently being undertaken by ELDSNet - publication, some time in the Autumn of 2010.

WHO book Legionella and the prevention of legionellosis
http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/emerging/legionella.pdf this book provides guidance on the assessment and management of risks associated with potential hazardous environments. It also identifies necessary measures to prevent or adequately control the risk of exposure to Legionella bacteria in various environments.

WHO factsheet on Legionnaires' disease http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs285/en/ an overview of Legionnaires' disease, its history, cause, effect and prevention.

European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) webpages on Legionnaires' disease http://ecdc.europa.eu/en/Health_topics/Legionellosis/ a brief introduction to Legionnaires' disease and its epidemiology along with further links to publications and programs run by ECDC.

(External site - please note that the HPA is not responsible for the content of external webpages.)

UK guidelines - UK specific guidelines for the investigation, control and management of legionella, produced by the HPA and various other agencies.

Last reviewed: 12 August 2010