Contact our law firm about a lawsuit for Legionnaires’ disease pneumonia. We are listed in the current U.S. News & World Report list of “Best Law Firms.” Let us help your family get compensation and justice.
Legionella and Legionnaires’ Disease
Legionnaires disease (LD) is an often fatal pneumonia (lung infection) caused by Legionella bacteria, generally Legionella pneumophila, and is sometimes referred to as Legionella pneumonia.
Our law firm is one of the few in the nation that represents Legionella pneumonia victims and their families throughout the United States in personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits against hotels, motels, resorts, cruise ships, hospitals, schools and others.
Compensation should include amounts for pain and suffering, medical expenses, lost income and other damages. If the family of someone who died has a wrongful death claim, compensation should include amounts for loss of companionship, expenses and other damages.
Compensation for Complications
When a bacterial infection leads to complications, a business responsible for causing that infection is generally legally responsible for complications caused by that infection.
A Legionella infection in the lungs (legionellosis) causes Legionnaires’ disease pneumonia, which can (and often does) lead to the following complications:
- Respiratory failure. The lungs are not able to get enough oxygen into your blood and/or to remove enough carbon monoxide from your blood.
- Septic shock. The Legionella bacteria can enter the blood stream, causing sepsis, which can lead to septic shock, which is a severe, sudden drop in blood pressure that reduces blood flow to vital organs, especially the kidneys and brain.
- Acute kidney failure. At least some cases of kidney failure (renal failure) from Legionella are caused by rhabdomyolysis, the breakdown of muscle fibers and subsequent release of myoglobin (muscle fiber contents) into the bloodstream. Myoglobin clogs up the kidneys and can cause kidney failure, which leads to the accumulation of waste.
Any of the above conditions can be fatal, and I have represented families who have lost loved ones in this way. Because this is such a dangerous illness, it is critical that these cases be reported to health officials as soon as possible.
Reporting Your Case of Legionella Pneumonia
Legionella pneumonia, also referred to as legionellosis, is a disease tracked by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which provides weekly reports on the number of cases reported from each state. Because of this, physicians are encouraged to report cases they diagnose. If your doctor has not reported your case to your local and state health departments, contact our attorneys.
State health departments are encouraged to report cases to the CDC, specifically the National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System (NNDSS) and Supplemental Legionnaires Disease Surveillance System (SLDSS). The SLDSS collects information related to case demographics, diagnosis, diagnostic testing, hospitalization, outcome, outbreak involvement, nosocomial classification, and recent travel history. The SLDSS gets Legionella pneumonia case information from state health departments, and occasionally from cruise lines, health-care providers, and private citizens. Foreign public health authorities also report cases to SLDSS, usually among travelers to the United States.
The information collected by the CDC is monitored for potential outbreaks of Legionella pneumonia. When an outbreak is detected, local and state health departments investigate to determine the source. If you have been contacted by your state or local health department for interviews, you are part of an outbreak. If the source of that outbreak can be found, you will have the right to seek compensation from the responsible party. Most of our cases involve hotels.
Attorney Fred Pritzker has won money for Legionella pneumonia victims and their families. You can click here now to contact Fred or call 1-888-377-8900 (toll free).
