Paracoccidioidomycosis: an unusual presentation in a young girl disclosing an unnoted HIV-infection.

The association of paracoccidioidomycosis with AIDS is apparently less frequent than expected. The authors present an unusual case of paracoccidioidomycosis in a 13-year-old female student which was later found to be the first opportunistic infection in the course of the patient's HIV-infection. The clinical presentation followed an accidental incised wound on the palmar region initially described as a 'sporotrichotic-chancre'. After good response under sulfamethoxazole-trimethoprin, the patient relapsed and presented an associated oral candidiasis. HIV-infection was documented and additional investigation showed CD4(+) T-cells=22/mm(3), CD8(+)=280 cell/mm(3) and viral load=4,043 log. This case report presents an uncommon dermatological-clinical picture in the youngest patient in which such association has been reported to date.

Histoplasmosis presenting as cellulitis 18 years after renal transplantation.

A 49-year-old renal transplant patient, under an 18-year course of immunosuppressive therapy with prednisone and azathioprine and, more recently, prednisone plus mycophenolate sodium, developed a cutaneous-subcutaneous infection caused by Histoplasma capsulatum. The clinical presentation consisted of a slowly enlarging, erythematous and infiltrative 25 cm plaque in the major axis on the arm. There was no involvement of the lungs or any other organ. Cure was obtained with itraconazole treatment after 12 months. Histoplasmosis is an uncommon opportunistic infection among solid organ transplanted patients with incidence of 0% to 2.1% observed in a large number of cases. This report describes an atypical cutaneous clinical presentation of a potentially fatal disease in immunosuppressed patients.

Pythium insidiosum: relato do primeiro caso de infecção humana no Brasil / Pythium insidiosum: report of the first case of human infection in Brazil

A pitiose é causada por microorganismo aquático, fungo-símile, o Pythium insidiosum, patógeno de homens e animais. Observou-se um paciente com úlcera fagedênica no membro inferior, com exame anatomopatológico sugestivo de zigomicose, pouco sensível à terapêutica antifúngica, obtendo-se cura por meio de ampla exérese. A comprovação etiológica resultou de métodos moleculares, com amplificação e seqüenciamento de DNA de organismo isolado em ágar Sabouraud, observando-se 100 por cento de analogia com seqüências de P. insidiosum depositadas no GenBank.

Pythiosis is caused by an aquatic fungus-like organism, Pythium insidiosum, pathogenic to men and animals. A patient with a phagedenic ulcer on the leg is reported. Histopathological examination was suggestive of zygomycosis, response to antifungal drugs was poor and cure was obtained by means of wide surgical excision. Etiologic diagnosis was confirmed by molecular amplification and DNA sequencing of colonies isolated in Sabouraud agar. After BLAST analysis, the sequence showed 100 percent identity with those of P. insidiosum deposited on the GenBank.