Inhalation Anthrax Is Diagnosed in Connecticut Woman, 94
November 21, 2001
The New York Times
THE SPORES
By PAUL ZIELBAUER
94-year-old woman from Oxford,
Conn., appears to have contracted
the inhaled form of anthrax, the rarest and
most deadly form of the disease, state and
federal officials said late yesterday
afternoon.
Investigators from the Federal Bureau of
Investigation arrived in Connecticut early
yesterday evening and began interviewing the woman's family, friends and
neighbors, said Gov. John G. Rowland. A team of anthrax specialists from
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was on its way from Atlanta
last night.
The stricken woman, Ottilie W. Lundgren, who was in critical condition late
last night at Griffin Hospital in Derby, has been tested five times for anthrax
since noon Friday, when she arrived with symptoms resembling those of an
upper respiratory infection, hospital officials said. Each test indicated the
presence of anthrax. The C.D.C. last night was beginning the most
sophisticated tests, on Mrs. Lundgren's DNA, to confirm the diagnosis.
Results are expected to be available today.
If those tests are positive, it would be the fourth confirmed case of inhalation
anthrax in the New York region. It is a baffling case because Mrs. Lundgren,
a widow, was hardly an obvious target. "It's difficult to explain how the
person contracted anthrax," Mr. Rowland said. '
The details of Mrs. Lundgren's case — an older woman living alone — are
oddly similar to those of the mystifying case of Kathy T. Nguyen, a Bronx
woman and hospital worker who died on Oct. 31 from inhalation anthrax. In
the weeks since her death, investigators have been unable to learn how she
was exposed to anthrax. Two postal workers in New Jersey who contracted
the disease have been released from hospitals.
More anthrax was discovered yesterday in Washington, where Lt. Dan
Nichols, the spokesman for the Capitol police, said traces of spores had
been found in the offices of two Democratic senators, Edward M. Kennedy
of Massachusetts and Christopher J. Dodd of Connecticut.
The amount of contamination was so small, said Dr. John F. Eisold, the
Capitol physician, that no treatment was recommended for the staff members
who work in those offices. "We don't view this as a public health risk," Dr.
Eisold said.
In Connecticut, all five tests performed on Mrs. Lundgren indicated she had
anthrax, said Dr. Stephanie Wain, director of Griffin Hospital's pathology
and laboratory medicine department.
The first, a test in which blood samples are placed in cultured broth, came
back positive early on Saturday, Dr. Wain said. Mrs. Lundgren, whose
condition was deteriorating, was immediately placed on antibiotics. A second
test, called a motility test, which determines whether the suspect bacteria are
moving — anthrax does not — returned positive on Sunday, Dr. Wain said.
Doctors conducted a second, more thorough motility test on Monday, she
said. It also indicated that Mrs. Lundgren was infected with bacillus anthracis
— anthrax.
Alerted by Griffin's doctors, the state's Department of Public Health rushed
to Derby later that day and conducted three tests: a fatty acid test that
fingerprints the bacteria in question; a phage study, in which a bacteria-eating
virus is introduced to the bacteria; and a direct fluorescent antibody test,
which identifies the exact type of bacillus organism present.
All three tests were positive for the inhaled form of the disease. The chances
that Mrs. Lundgren's tests results are wrong are "very small," Dr. Wain said.
Inhalation anthrax is extremely rare in humans, but if left untreated is often
fatal. Once the spores are inhaled and germinate, the bacteria attack the
lymph nodes. It is difficult for people to catch the disease in nature, though it
can be acquired from sick animals or goat hair. The early symptoms are
much like those of flu and other respiratory diseases.
If subsequent tests confirm that Mrs. Lundgren has inhalation anthrax, the
case will be treated as a criminal act, officials said. "If the confirmation tests
are positive, the F.B.I. is going to be working with the people from our state
on a criminal investigation," said Connecticut's public health commissioner,
Joxel Garcia.
"I myself am praying" for the tests to be wrong, Dr. Garcia said. "I love my
lab, but I would love that they were wrong."
The news that anthrax had appeared in Connecticut caused great alarm
among state and local leaders. Mr. Rowland called Mrs. Lundgren's case "an
anomaly" and urged public calm.
"I'm shocked because I'm trying to figure how it could have occurred, and
that alarms me," he said. "I will do all I can along with our public safety
officials and any other leads we can get from this preliminary investigation
and follow up to make sure people are safe." There is no evidence at this
point that anybody else has been exposed, Mr. Rowland said.
Mrs. Lundgren lives in a house in the rural part of Oxford, a picturesque
town in the Naugatuck River Valley. Although she still drove a car, Mr.
Rowland said, her travels were mostly limited to local shops and activities.
By yesterday evening, as F.B.I. agents were conducting interviews, a team of
forensic biologists from the state's Department of Environmental Quality had
sealed her home on Edgewood Road and were testing for signs of anthrax,
state officials said.
"I've talked to 10 people already, and nobody can believe it," said State
Representative Themis Klarides of Ansonia, Conn., whose district includes
Oxford. But she cautioned, "We can't panic until we know where it came
from."
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