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A rare case of C ryptococcus gattii pneumonia in a renal transplant patient
Author(s) -
Cicora F.,
Petroni J.,
Formosa P.,
Roberti J.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
transplant infectious disease
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.69
H-Index - 67
eISSN - 1399-3062
pISSN - 1398-2273
DOI - 10.1111/tid.12371
Subject(s) - medicine , cryptococcus gattii , fluconazole , pneumonia , vomiting , amphotericin b , surgery , cryptococcosis , pathology , dermatology , antifungal
C ryptococcus neoformans and C ryptococcus gattii are environmental fungi that can cause fever, cough, pneumonia, meningoencephalitis, dissemination, and death. C . gattii causes cryptococcomas more frequently than does C . neoformans and may require prolonged antifungal treatment. We present a rare case of C . gattii pneumonia in a renal transplant patient. A 44‐year‐old man, living in a rural area endemic for C . gattii and who had received a kidney transplant, was admitted to the hospital with fever, vomiting, weight loss, and diarrhea. A chest computed tomography revealed 2 alveolar, nodular, subpleural infiltrates in the periphery of the lungs. Differential diagnoses included infectious infiltrates, granulomatosis, embolization, and hemorrhage. C . gattii , molecular type VGI , was confirmed on day 28. Treatment consisted of amphotericin B at 1 mg/kg/day or fluconazole at 800 mg/day for first 6 weeks, followed by fluconazole at 400 mg/day for the subsequent 12 months. Response to the therapy has been slow. Because of the occurrence of outbreaks and its high morbidity and mortality rates, physicians must be aware of this complication in transplant recipients to avoid delays in diagnosis and to provide prompt management.