The report, entitled 'A cluster of Legionnaires' disease caused by legionella longbeachae linked to potting compost in Scotland, 2008-2009', said that three people between the ages of 58 and 65 were all diagnosed with the disease, specifically caused by the organism, Legionella longbeachae.
The Eurosurveillance report claimed that tests revealed that other possible sources of the disease, such as the water system, were clear but all three patients had been using growing media mixed with compost to pot bulbs or plant tomatoes before contracting the disease, which is a potentially fatal form of pneumonia.
Despite linking the disease to the compost the report stressed: “The exact method of transmission is still not fully understood as Legionnaires' disease is thought to be acquired by droplet inhalation.”
It called for labelling to warn gardeners of the risk
of contracting Legionnaires'.
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