Can you get Legionnaire's disease from a water pitcher?

My father, who is a cancer patient, was diagnosed with Legionnaire's disease yesterday. Is there any way the plastic Brita pitcher we keep in our fridge can harbor the bacteria? We have never sterilized the pitcher, and we don't have any humidifiers, pools, or standing water.

Brita water filter pitchers are technically good for filtering lead and chlorine and parasites from the water. Because, your father is a cancer pt; his immune system is compromised and made much more susceptible to infections such as Legionnaire's Disease.

Legionnaires' disease, which is also known as Legionellosis, is a form of pneumonia


Legionnaires' disease is most often contracted by inhaling mist from water sources such as whirlpool baths, showers, and cooling towers that are contaminated with Legionella bacteria. There is no evidence for person-to-person spread of the disease.


Relative humidity, temperature, and other environmental factors can alter the incidence and the fatality rates of infectious diseases, including Legionnaires' disease.


For example, cooling towers and evaporative condensers of large air conditioning systems have been associated with outbreaks of the disease, and the highest incidence of Legionnaires' disease occurs in the warmest months of the year, the time when air conditioning systems are used the most.


It's possible to contract Legionnaire's disease from standing water and polluted water with molds from water filters..You should have that Canadian Brita water filtration pitcher cleaned thoroughly and checked. He might be better off drinking from bottled water. The contaminant Legionella which causes Legionnaire's dsease is found naturally in water;and multiplies in the heating systems You might be interested to hear of the below:


Pentair ordered to pay $193 million to cruise line; filter blamed for 1994 outbreak of Legionnaire's disease on a ship.
A new york jury ordered Pentair inc., the maker of everpure water filters, to pay $193 million to celebrity cruise lines inc., finding a subsidiary responsible for a 1994 outbreak of Legionnaires' disease on a cruise ship.

No. Legionnaire's disease is an airborne illness

Causes:

* Investigations of outbreaks have documented aerosol transmission from contaminated water sources, including the following:

o Cooling systems

o Showers

o Decorative fountains

o Humidifiers

o Respiratory therapy equipment

o Whirlpool spas

In answer to your question yes, it is possible, but the legionellae would have to have had access to the jug in the first place. Possibly from the domestic water supply. It is also possible that someone brought it to your house and it has spread from them to your water system. Legionnaires is considered an environmental disease because its causative agent (legionellae) is transmitted from an environmental source (water) to a person (in contrast with communicable diseases, such as AIDS, which are transmitted from person to person). Therefore, keeping legionellae out of water is the key to preventing the disease. For example, plumbing systems can be maintained to minimize the growth of legionellae. And if preventive measures alone do not control the bacteria, disinfection procedures can be implemented.
I add a link that contains details of this subject-

http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/
h2g2/A898473

Hope this helps
Matador 89

Legionella pneumophila most often causes pneumonia, with extrapulmonary features. Diagnosis requires specific growth media, serologic testing, or PCR analysis. Treatment is with doxycycline, macrolides, or fluoroquinolones.
Please see the web pages for more details on Legionnaire disease.