Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37396377›Full record

ArticleFrontiers in microbiology2023

Could oral hygiene prevent cases of at-home-acquired Legionnaires' disease? - Results of a comprehensive case-control study on infection sources, risk, and protective behaviors.

Ann-Sophie Lehfeld, Franziska Reber, Marina M Lewandowsky, Heiko J Jahn, Christian Lück, Markus Petzold, Benedikt Schaefer, Anna-Rachel Germelmann, Katrin Lorenz, Udo Buchholz

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Frontiers in microbiology, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Pathogens (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025
    Review
  2. Tropical medicine and infectious disease · 2023
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Ann-Sophie LehfeldDepartment of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, Robert Koch Institute, Berlin, Germany.
Franziska ReberDepartment of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, Robert Koch Institute, Berlin, Germany.
Marina M LewandowskyDepartment of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, Robert Koch Institute, Berlin, Germany.
Heiko J JahnDepartment of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, Robert Koch Institute, Berlin, Germany.
Christian LückFaculty of Medicine Carl Gustav Carus, Institute of Medical Microbiology and Virology, National Consulting Laboratory for Legionella, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany.
Markus PetzoldFaculty of Medicine Carl Gustav Carus, Institute of Medical Microbiology and Virology, National Consulting Laboratory for Legionella, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany.
Benedikt SchaeferSection II 3.5 Microbiology of Drinking Water and Swimming Pool Water, German Environment Agency, Bad Elster, Germany.
Anna-Rachel GermelmannIndependent Researcher, Berlin, Germany.
Katrin LorenzDepartment of Periodontology, Technische Universität Dresden, Dresden, Germany.
Udo BuchholzDepartment of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, Robert Koch Institute, Berlin, Germany.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Introduction: The "LeTriWa study" on community-acquired cases of Legionnaires' disease (LD) found that most cases likely acquired their infection at home (AHALD). However, which sources confer the infection is largely unknown. We therefore analyzed the data set from the LeTriWa study to find out if individual sources were associated with AHALD and if specific behavioral habits may increase or lower the risk for AHALD. Methods: During the study we had used two comparison groups: (i) controls matched for age group and hospital ("controls"), (ii) household members of cases with AHALD ("AHALD-HHM"). We inquired about exposure to water sources, such as showering or wearing dentures, as well as behavioral factors and habits related to oral hygiene. We took standardized household bathroom water and biofilm samples of both cases with AHALD and controls, and in addition from households of cases with AHALD only samples from suspect residential (non-)drinking water sources. We first conducted bivariate analyses for infection sources and behaviors, followed by multivariable analyses. Results: There were 124 cases with AHALD, 217 controls and 59 AHALD-HHM. In bivariate analyses using controls for comparison, wearing dentures was the only variable significantly positively associated (odds ratio (OR) = 1.7, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.1-2.7, Discussion: Wearing (inadequately cleaned) dentures or poor oral hygiene might confer an increased risk for AHALD, and oral hygiene may prevent AHALD. The hypothesis that

Indexed as

denturesLegionellaLegionnaires’ diseaseLeTriWa studyoral hygiene

Identifiers

PMID37396377
PMCPMC10311500

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.