Disseminated Cryptococcosis With Severe Increased Intracranial Pressure Complicated With Cranial Nerve Palsy in a Child.

Cryptococcosis is less common in children than in adults but remains an important cause of pneumonia and meningoencephalitis in both immunocompromised and immunocompetent patients. Intracranial hypertension commonly complicates cryptococcal meningitis and may cause significant visual and neurologic morbidity and mortality. Early and aggressive management of intracranial hypertension in accordance with established guidelines reduces the risk of long-term complications and death. In this case report, we present a 12-year-old girl with cryptococcal meningitis, pneumonitis and dermatitis complicated with cranial nerve palsy and loss of vision. She was successfully treated with serial cerebrospinal fluid drainage, antifungal and interferon gamma therapy.

Evaluation of vancomycin resistance 3 multiplexed PCR assay for detection of vancomycin-resistant enterococci from rectal swabs.

BACKGROUND: Active screening for vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) using rectal specimens is recommended to limit the spread of antimicrobial resistance within certain high-risk populations. We evaluated the diagnostic performance of Vancomycin Resistance 3 Multiplexed Tandem PCR assay (AusDiagnostics, Australia), a rapid multiplex real-time PCR assay that detects vanA and/or vanB. METHODS: Two-hundred-and-eleven rectal swabs from Hematology and Oncology unit were submitted for VRE surveillance via direct detection of vanA and/or vanB by culture and by using Vancomycin Resistance 3 Multiplexed Tandem PCR assay. Enterococci were identified to the species level by using standard biochemical tests and BD Phoenix Automated Microbiology System (BD Diagnostic Systems, USA). Vancomycin susceptibility of enterococci was determined using Etest (BioMerieux, France). RESULTS: Compared to the culture method, Vancomycin Resistance 3 Multiplexed Tandem PCR assay had a sensitivity of 84.0%, specificity of 98.8%, positive predictive value (PPV) of 91.3%, and negative predictive value (NPV) of 97.6%. The assay failed to detect 18 (8.5%) specimens because of the presence of PCR inhibitors; of the remaining 193 specimens, 25 (12.9%) were positive, 23 for vanA, and 2 for vanB. Although both sensitivity and specificity for vanA VRE was 100% compared to the culture method, all vanB-positive specimens tested negative by VRE culture. CONCLUSIONS: Vancomycin Resistance 3 Multiplexed Tandem PCR assay is a rapid and laborsaving option for VRE surveillance for direct use on rectal swabs. However, the high rate of PCR failure owing to the inhibitors in the specimens and the low specificity for vanB should be considered when interpreting the results.

Aspergillus alliaceus and Aspergillus flavus co-infection in an acute myeloid leukemia patient.

We report a case of a pulmonary infection caused by Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus alliaceus in an acute myeloid leukemia patient. These isolates were identified using traditional and sequencing-based molecular methods.

Disseminated fusariosis caused by Fusarium verticillioides in an acute lymphoblastic leukemia patient after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.

Fusarium species are saprophytic molds which cause disseminated or localized infections in humans. Disseminated Fusarium infection can cause significant morbidity and mortality in immunocompromised patients. We present a case of disseminated fusariosis caused by Fusarium verticillioides in a patient with acute lymphoblastic leukemia and successfully treated using both liposomal amphotericin B and voriconazole.