Invasive fungal infection of the brain caused by Neoscytalidium dimidiatum in a post-renal transplant patient: A case report

Medical Mycology Case Reports

Heba Alghamdi¹  Reem S. Almaghrabi²  Maha Alzayer³  Fahad Alajlan⁴  Michel Doumith⁵  Majed Alghoribi⁵  M. Anas Dababo⁶  Sahar Althawadi⁶  Maysoon Mutabaggani⁶  Maha Alamri⁷ 

[1] Corresponding author. Section of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre, Riyadh, 11211, Saudi Arabia.;King Saud Bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia;Adult Neurology, Neuroscience Department, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia;Anatomic Pathology, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia;Infectious Diseases Research Department, King Abdullah International Medical Research Center, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia;Microbiology Laboratory, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia;Section of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Centre, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia;

关键词: Scytalidium;    Neoscytalidium dimidiatum;    Fungal;    Infection;    Transplant;    Immunocompromised;   

DOI  :  

来源: DOAJ

【 摘 要 】

Neoscytalidium is a phytopathogen that is often found in plants and soil. It mostly leads to skin and nail infections, and invasive diseases of the sinuses, lung, and brain have been described mostly in immunocompromised patients. We report a case of a post-renal transplant patient who received anti-thymocyte globulin for induction immunosuppression. A month after her transplant, she presented with fever and new-onset seizures, and computed tomography revealed a brain abscess with mass effects and herniation. The patient underwent abscess drainage and craniectomy. The pathological findings showed filamentous septate hyphae. The surgical culture rapidly grew wool-like colonies with a black reverse on Sabouraud agar. Lactophenol cotton blue staining showing septate branched hyphae with one to two arthroconidia cells with flattened ends. The patient was given a combination of amphotericin B and voriconazole but unfortunately died ten days after the diagnosis. This case highlights Neoscytalidium as a cause of invasive fungal disease in immunocompromised patients that is difficult to treat and is often fatal, even when combined surgical and medical therapies are used as treatment modalities.

【 授权许可】

Unknown