Open AccessEpidemic giardiasis caused by a contaminated public water supply.
Author(s) -
Georgep . Kent,
Joel R. Greenspan,
Joy L. Herndon,
Lynne M. Mofenson,
Jeanette A. Harris,
Thomas R. Eng,
Hettya . Waskin
Publication year - 1988
Publication title -
american journal of public health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.284
H-Index - 264
eISSN - 1541-0048
pISSN - 0090-0036
DOI - 10.2105/ajph.78.2.139
Subject(s) - giardia , water supply , potable water , population , environmental health , incidence (geometry) , public health , diarrhea , water contamination , medicine , contamination , environmental science , veterinary medicine , environmental engineering , biology , ecology , physics , nursing , optics
In the period November 1, 1985 to January 31, 1986, 703 cases of giardiasis were reported in Pittsfield, Massachusetts (population 50,265). The community obtained its water from two main reservoirs (A and B) and an auxiliary reservoir (C). Potable water was chlorinated but not filtered. The incidence of illness peaked approximately two weeks after the city began obtaining a major portion of its water from reservoir C, which had not been used for three years. The attack rate of giardiasis for residents of areas supplied by reservoir C was 14.3/1000, compared with 7.0/1000 in areas that received no water from reservoir C. A case-control study showed that persons with giardiasis were more likely to be older and to have drunk more municipal water than household controls. A community telephone survey indicated that over 3,800 people could have had diarrhea that might have been caused by Giardia, and 95 per cent of households were either using alternate sources of drinking water or boiling municipal water. Environmental studies identified Giardia cysts in the water of reservoir C. Cysts were also detected in the two other reservoirs supplying the city, but at lower concentrations. This investigation highlights the risk of giardiasis associated with unfiltered surface water systems.