Following a devastating EF5 tornado that hit Joplin, Mo., in 2011 researchers studied the number of pneumonia cases in the area and found a strong link between the natural disaster and a spike in infections, according to a study published in the American Journal of Infection Control.
Researchers reviewed more than 940 pneumonia cases admitted to Joplin, Mo., hospitals between May 2009 — two years before the EF5 hit — to May 2012. Their analysis revealed a drastic increase in the number of pneumonia cases from within the tornado zone during the month immediately following the disaster compared to prior years.
For instance, the number of patients with pneumonia admitted from within the tornado zone during the third year after the disaster was 51.8 percent greater than in the second year after the disaster, whereas the number of patients who did not live or work in the tornado zone experienced only a 28.9-percent increase in pneumonia cases.
Additionally, microbes isolated in the sputum of patients the tornado zone included several atypical pathogens — including those usually found in soil, decaying vegetation and water — that were not found in patients who lived in the area prior to the tornado.
"Results of this study show that a more aggressive approach to treating pneumonia in tornado victims should be taken, including broader coverage for gram-negative and atypical microbes," wrote the study authors. "Therefore, it is recommended that empiric antimicrobial coverage in these patients include multidrug coverage against gram-positive, including methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus; gram-negative; and atypical microbes."
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