List bacteria alleged to have caused infections at queen elizabeth university hospital Glasgow
Executive summary
The reporting and inquiry material identifies Stenotrophomonas maltophilia as a named bacterium linked to fatal and serious infections at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital (QEUH) in Glasgow, and describes clusters of “rare” and multiple gram‑negative organisms recovered from patients that investigators say were probably linked to the hospital environment—particularly the water system [1] [2] [3]. NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde initially denied a causal role for the building but later accepted there was “on the balance of probabilities” a connection between some infections and the water system [4] [5].
1. Stenotrophomonas maltophilia — the repeatedly named culprit
Multiple news reports and inquiry evidence single out Stenotrophomonas maltophilia as a bacterium that infected vulnerable children treated at QEUH, most notably the 10‑year‑old Milly Main who died after a line delivering medication became infected with that organism in 2017 [1] [6] [7]. Coverage cites families and clinical records tying S. maltophilia to bloodstream or device‑associated infections among paediatric oncology patients, and the organism has been specifically linked in reporting to contamination of the hospital’s water system [1] [8].
2. “Rare” and mixed gram‑negative organisms found in water‑linked infections
Independent reviews and inquiry testimony describe an unusual rise in cultures showing multiple organisms and “more gram‑negative organisms” originating in the hospital environment, with reviewers calling the bacteria discovered “not normal” for the setting; the independent case‑note review found 118 episodes of serious bacterial infection in 84 children and concluded a third were “most likely” linked to the hospital environment [9] [2] [10]. Reporting and the Wikipedia summary characterise many of these as “rare bacteria” associated with contaminated water, but do not enumerate a broader list of specific species beyond S. maltophilia in the sources provided [3] [2].
3. Water system contamination, pigeon droppings and environmental pathways
Several outlets and the compiled reporting tie the cluster of unusual infections to contamination of the hospital’s water supply—reports even point to pigeon droppings as one implicated vector for introducing organisms to the system—and the health board has accepted that the water system was “in particular” connected to some infections [3] [5] [8]. That environmental linkage helps explain why gram‑negative waterborne organisms and mixed cultures appeared in line‑associated bloodstream infections among immunocompromised patients [9] [2].
4. Fungi and other non‑bacterial pathogens were also reported but are distinct
Coverage repeatedly documents non‑bacterial pathogens encountered at QEUH—aspergillus and cryptococcus are cited as causes of severe illness and death among patients—but these are fungi rather than bacteria and are linked to airborne dust/ventilation or environmental exposure rather than the narrower bacterial water contamination question [1] [6]. These reports underscore that the scandal involved multiple environmental infection risks (water and ventilation), but they do not expand the list of bacterial species beyond the gram‑negative cluster descriptions and S. maltophilia in the available sources [1] [2].
5. Limits of the public record and competing narratives
Public reporting and inquiry papers emphasise that at least 84 children contracted “rare” bacteria and that the health board’s position shifted from denial to admitting a probable causal role for the water system, yet the sources provided do not publish a comprehensive roster of every bacterial species cultured across the cases—investigations, legal filings and microbiology datasets would be needed to generate a definitive list [3] [4] [5]. The health board’s earlier denials, the political pressure to open the hospital on time and subsequent legal and criminal investigations introduce competing motives and narratives—families and advocates name environmental bacteria as causes while NHSGGC previously resisted that connection until its late admission [5] [7] [11].