Hyphal Forms in the Central Nervous System of Patients with Coccidioidomycosis

Coccidioides immitis is a dimorphic fungus that grows as a filamentous mold in soil and as a spherule at human body temperature. The hyphal or soil form is found rarely in human tissue. We report 5 cases of coccidioidomycosis in which hyphae were found in brain tissue or spinal fluid. The presence o...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Clinical infectious diseases 2000-02, Vol.30 (2), p.349-355
Main Authors: Hagman, Heidi M., Madnick, Ellen G., D'Agostino, Anthony N., Williams, Paul L., Shatsky, Stanley, Mirels, Laurence F., Tucker, Richard M., Rinaldi, Michael G., Stevens, David A., Bryant, Richard E.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Antifungal Agents - therapeutic use
Biological and medical sciences
Brain - microbiology
Brain Diseases - diagnosis
Brain Diseases - drug therapy
Brain Diseases - etiology
Central nervous system
Clinical Articles
Coccidioides
Coccidioides - classification
Coccidioides - isolation & purification
Coccidioides immitis
Coccidioidomycosis
Coccidioidomycosis - cerebrospinal fluid
Coccidioidomycosis - diagnosis
Coccidioidomycosis - drug therapy
Coccidioidomycosis - etiology
Fatal Outcome
Female
Fever
Headache
Human mycoses
Humans
Hydrocephalus
Hyphae
Infections
Infectious diseases
Male
Medical sciences
Meningitis
Microbial Sensitivity Tests
Middle Aged
Mycelium
Mycoses
Prognosis
Risk Assessment
Tropical medicine
Tropical mycoses
Ventriculoperitoneal Shunt - adverse effects
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Description
Summary:Coccidioides immitis is a dimorphic fungus that grows as a filamentous mold in soil and as a spherule at human body temperature. The hyphal or soil form is found rarely in human tissue. We report 5 cases of coccidioidomycosis in which hyphae were found in brain tissue or spinal fluid. The presence of central nervous system plastic devices appears to be associated with morphological reversion to the saprophytic form. This reversion has implications for diagnosis and therapy and may increase the risk of obstruction of the device(s).
ISSN:1058-4838
1537-6591
DOI:10.1086/313643