Disseminated coccidioidomycosis. Unusual manifestations in a cardiac transplantation patient

Am J Med. 1987 Nov;83(5):949-52. doi: 10.1016/0002-9343(87)90657-7.

Abstract

Because of the immunosuppressive therapy received by patients undergoing cardiac transplantation, disseminated infections, including disseminated fungal infections, often develop. Disseminated coccidioidomycosis developed in a 23-year-old man soon after undergoing orthotopic cardiac transplantation. Clinical manifestations included an unusual rash, severe myositis and arthropathy, a rapid downhill course, and pathologic evidence of widespread fungal invasion, including invasion of the cardiac graft. Detailed travel and geographic histories, and perhaps skin testing and antibody determinations for geographic-specific pathogens, should be part of the preoperative evaluation of all transplant candidates.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Cardiomyopathy, Dilated / therapy
  • Coccidioidomycosis / etiology*
  • Heart Transplantation*
  • Humans
  • Immunosuppression Therapy / adverse effects*
  • Male
  • Risk Factors
  • Travel