Cutaneous cryptococosis: systemic or localized disease?
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.5935/2764-734X.e20230324Keywords:
Cryptococcosis, Invasive Fungal Infections, Cutaneous Manifestations., Case ReportAbstract
Cutaneous cryptococcosis is a fungal infection that can manifest as localized or disseminated disease in both immunocompetent and immunocompromised patients. The present report describes a case of an 81-year-old man from the rural area of Bahia, with the cutaneous form of the disease. Initially the patient was considered to have primary cryptococcosis and was treated with fluconazole. However, in order to rule out disseminated disease, the patient underwent chest tomography, which showed pulmonary nodules that, associated with positive antigenemia, justified the change to liposomal amphotericin B. There was a satisfactory clinical response with no evident complications related to the treatment, but a late metastatic prostate cancer diagnosis allowed to question the supposed fungal infection spread. The differentiation between localized and disseminated cryptococcosis is difficult, but it is fundamental for the proper direction of treatment.
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