Is Your Hot Tub a Stew for Deadly Bacteria?

Hot tubs are often the retreat travelers seek after a long road trip or flight to another country. They are relaxing and quickly soothe aching muscles. But just how clean are they? And what can happen to you if they are not?

They're a great way to relax, but one woman's dip in a hot tub nearly cost her life. Now she's warning others about her horrifying ordeal. CBS 2 investigative reporter David Goldstein has her story.

The warm water of a hot tub nearly cost Stacy Intille her life. Intille and her boyfriend stayed at the Marina Dunes Resort in Monterey where she wanted to use the hot tub on the balcony of her room to help her aching back and get ready for work. The tub was supposed to be drained and filled after each use.

But instead of a normal hot tub experience, Intille had a nightmare of sorts after: She developed flu-like symptoms with congestion in her lungs.

After visiting her doctor who knew immediately she had a severe problem, Intille was taken to the hospital's intensive care unit immediately.

Doctors soon learned she had contracted Legionnaires’ disease from the hot tub -- a rare, and often fatal, illness that is a form of pneumonia. Later when they investigated the hot tub, the health department found legionella bacteria and blamed it as the cause of her illness.

So what happened? Well, it's very difficult to get all the water out of hot tubs; even after draining, water often remains inside the tub's jets or motor. In this case, Intille could have easily been contaminated from trace amounts of water that collected inside the jets.

Matt Freije, an expert on Legionnaires’ disease, says these hot tubs are perfect breeding grounds for legionella as well as other organisms that make people sick.

Freije said: The bubbles bursting into the air can actually emit the airborne particles that a person can inhale into their lungs.

This is not the first case where someone got infected in a hot tub; on tripadvisor.com, a website devoted to hotel reivews, there are dozens of stories of guests who allegedly got sick from hotel hot tubs.

With the potential for serious illness, Intille wants to educate the public about the dangers of hot tubs. She said: I've been a nurse for 20 years. Worked in the ICU…ER...and I had no idea you can get legionnaires disease from a spa.

Public hot tubs that sit by the pool are usually inspected by the health department who mandate the use of chlorine and chemicals to fight-off bacteria. However, the in-room hot tubs are not regulated.

Intille has convinced health officials in Monterey and San Luis Obispo to impose strict guidelines so another incident like hers doesn't happen again. Without proper safe guards, however, it will be difficult for anyone to anticipate what infections a previous guest was carrying when he or she used the hot tub.

I think this is evidence enough that hotels should follow the same cleaning process for the in room hot tubs as they do the outside water pools. This could happen to anyone.

UPDATE: Stacy Intille, RN, who went through this horrendous experience in this story has written a great tips how to deal with such hot tubs or spas in the hotel. Follow the directions and protect yourself from possible danger to your health. Here is the article.

For other health related topics click here.

Ref: http://cbs2.com/topstories/local_story_138012141.html