The 2022 Tucumán legionellosis outbreak[2] refers to an epidemic that originated in San Miguel de Tucumán, Argentina. It was first identified on Saturday, 20 August 2022, when 7 people arrived at the Tucumán Hospital with fever, malaise, shortness of breath, and headache.
The first six cases were five healthcare workers and one patient.[3] These cases started showing symptoms between 18 and 22 August. All six of these cases were linked to a single private health facility. [citation needed]
On 1 September, three more cases were found through active case finding, bringing the total number of cases to nine, with three deaths.[4] The three new cases were all health workers from the same private health facility.
On 2 and 3 September, two more case were found, bringing the total number of cases to eleven.[3] The median age of these eleven cases was 45, with seven male and four female cases.[5] All eleven reported cases were transferred to intensive care units.
On 4 September, eight more cases were reported, bringing the total number of cases to 19, with six deaths.[1][8]
On 5 September, the Ministry of Public Health of Tucumán reported new inclusion criteria for the case definition of the outbreak. The new case definition included any health personnel, family, or patient who had been in or received surgery in this private health facility in the month of August, with compatible symptoms such as respiratory symptoms or fever, but not necessarily bilateral pneumonia.[9]
On 6 September, the Ministry of Public Health reported a total of 22 cases and six deaths.[9]
