대한흉부영상의학회 Korean Society of Thoracic Radiology

Discussion

Diagnosis With Brief Discussion

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Discussion

-Causative fungus: Cryptococcus neoformans
-Epidemiology: It is distributed worldwideand found in soil and other enviornmental areas such as those contaminated by pigeon droppings.

-Principal route of acquisition: respiratory (inhalation of spores)

-Clinical manifestations: highly variable, ranging from sarophytic airway colonization without clinical evidence of disease to full-blown acute respiratory distress syndrome in compromised hosts. Cryptococcal infection can deveop in both immunocompetent and immunocompromised hosts, but it may result in severe, disseminated disease in immunocompromised patients.

-Definitive diagnosis depends on demonstrating characteristic yeat-like organism with its surrounding capsule in tissue or fluid obtained from involved sites, together with cultural confirmation.

-Pulmonary cryptococcosis may manifest as a solitary lung mass, as multiple nodules, as a segmental or lobar consolidation, or rarely as an interstitial pneumonia. Cavitation, effusion, and adenopathy are more frequently seen in immunocompromised hosts than in immumocompetent hosts.

Keywords

Lung, Infection, Fungal infection,