California IN BRIEF : SAN FRANCISCO : Boy’s Fatal Illness Traced to Hospital

A boy who died of Legionnaires’ disease may have contracted the illness during a stay at UC San Francisco Medical Center, a doctor said. Two rooms in which the boy stayed in February were closed because the bacteria that causes Legionnaires’ disease was detected in sinks in both rooms, said Dr. John Conte, the medical center’s chief of infectious diseases. Conte said it was “possible to probable” that the boy contracted the disease at the hospital, where he died. Conte added: “It hasn’t been proved with certainty.” The boy’s name and age were not released. Hospital officials did not publicly disclose that there had been a death from Legionnaires’ disease at the medical center until asked about the case by the San Francisco Chronicle. The newspaper reported Saturday that the boy had been undergoing treatment for a brain tumor.