Increased risk

Everyone is potentially at risk of developing Legionnaires disease. However,certainthings make it more likely that you will experience a more severe form of the infection. These include:

  • being 50 years of age or over 235 (83%) of the 284 confirmed cases in 2013 involved people over 50 years of age
  • smoking, orhaving smoked heavily in the past (a recent study has shown that smoking cannabis may also increase your risk)
  • drinking alcohol heavily
  • about three-quarters have an underlying medical condition, such as diabetes , kidney disease , ora pre-existing lung condition
  • having a weakened immune system for example, people with HIV and AIDS or cancer
Content supplied by the NHS Website

Medically Reviewed by a doctor on 21 Dez 2018