SEARCH · Search PubMed

Results for “BLASTOMYCOSIS”

Search indexed PubMed citations on genomics, clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health. Explore titles, authors and supplied subject terms, then open the PubMed record.

SourceResearch connectionFrom yearThrough year

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

PubMed1985

A laboratory-based surveillance of human blastomycosis in Wisconsin between 1973 and 1982.

Blastomycosis appears to be prevalent in states around the Great Lakes. However, its incidence in these states has not been reported. The Wisconsin Division of Health established a laboratory-based surveillance for human blastomycosis in Wisconsin to estimate disease incidence and identify endemic areas in the state for the interval 1973 to 1982. Certified mycology and pathology laboratories in Wisconsin and at two major medical centers in Minnesota were surveyed for all laboratory isolates and identifications in tissue of Blastomyces dermatitidis obtained in Wisconsin residents during 1973-1982. A total of 235 isolates and identifications of B. dermatitidis were obtained; 214 (88%) Wisconsin laboratories participated. It was estimated that the annual incidence of blastomycosis in Wisconsin for 1973-1982 ranged between 0.32 and 0.72 cases per 100,000 total population (mean, 0.48 cases/100,000 population). Cases were reported in residents from 40 (56%) of the 72 Wisconsin counties. Residents of seven counties in northern and central Wisconsin had significantly higher incidences of blastomycosis than residents of other counties in which cases were documented. The incidence of blastomycosis in Wisconsin for 1973-1982 is similar to that noted in Mississippi, Kentucky, and Arkansas where this disease is thought to be endemic and where similar surveys have been performed.

Adult↗

PubMed1995

Detection of specific antibodies in human blastomycosis by enzyme immunoassay.

Serologic tests for the diagnosis of blastomycosis have had inadequate sensitivity, but results are improved with enzyme immunoassay (EIA) with A-antigen of Blastomyces dermatitidis. The Premier Blastomyces EIA kit (Meridian Diagnostics Inc, Cincinnati, Ohio) detected antibody against the B dermatitidis A-antigen in sera from 104 of 125 patients (83%) with culture-proven blastomycosis. Semiquantitative index values (positivity multiplied by the dilution) ranged from 1.0 to 423.3; the degree of positivity correlated with disease activity. Immunodiffusion bands were infrequently detected, with positive specimens from only 19 (21%) of 92 patients with blastomycosis. In 8 of 24 patients with histoplasmosis, 24 of 51 specimens (47%) were positive for Blastomyces antibody by EIA; index values were lower, with a mean of 3.8 versus 24.3 for sera from patients with blastomycosis. Only 1 of 13 patients with other fungal infections had positive results with EIA. This EIA system provided better sensitivity than previously available commercial systems for serodiagnosis of blastomycosis.

Antibodies, Fungal↗

PubMed2004

Blastomycosis of long bones.

The presentation of blastomycosis clinically and radiographically is nonspecific and often mistaken for a neoplasm. Delay in diagnosis is common. Patients with osseous blastomycosis present with pain and swelling. Radiographs usually show an eccentric lucency in the distal ends of long bones. These patients frequently are referred for a neoplastic workup and a diagnosis is made only after biopsy. We review the cases of five patients diagnosed with a bone tumor who had blastomycosis osteomyelitis. The time to diagnosis from original symptoms was 4.7 months (range, 3-8 months). The average age of the patients was 45.6 years (range, 20-59 years). A Musculoskeletal Tumor Society functional assessment was done. Early radiographs of the current patients ranged from normal to showing faint osteopenia in the involved location. As the disease progressed, the area of lucency appeared with either diffuse or well-marginated borders. Treatment included surgical debridement with antifungals. The mean functional score was 93.3%. All patients are disease-free. Blastomycosis, similar to tuberculosis, often is mistaken for a neoplasm. Blastomycosis osteomyelitis can be treated with excellent results. The key is diagnosis and including endemic fungal infections in the differential diagnosis of bone tumors. In addition, every potential neoplasm should include cultures of specimens obtained at biopsy.

Adult↗

PubMed1981

Blastomyces dermatitidis antigen-induced lymphocytes reactivity in human blastomycosis.

Because of the unavailability of a suitable antigen, specific in vitro lymphocyte reactivity has not been investigated in persons who have had systemic blastomycosis. Twelve persons who had recovered from blastomycosis were evaluated, and all were found to exhibit strongly positive and apparently specific in vitro cellular responses to an alkali-soluble, water-soluble extract of Blastomyces dermatitidis yeast-phase cell walls. Significant lymphocyte transformation induced by this soluble antigen occurred with cells from persons who had recovered from blastomycosis as much as 16 years previously, indicating long-lasting cell-mediated immunity to B. dermatitidis. A simple new in vitro test, lymphocyte migration inhibition, also made it possible to distinguish persons who had had blastomycosis and recovered from persons who had never had the disease. Two in vitro tests of cell-mediated immunity in which the alkali-soluble, water-soluble extract of B. dermatitidis yeast-phase cell walls was employed were highly discriminating. Tests with this antigen may be of value in delineating the epidemiology of blastomycosis and in assessing the prognosis of individual cases.

Antigens, Fungal↗

PubMed1978

Defective neutrophil locomotion in human blastomycosis: evidence for a serum inhibitor.

Unstimulated or stimulated locomotion, bactericidal, and metabolic activities of polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMN) from 12 nonimmunosuppressed patients with invasive fungal infections proved by culture, were evaluated before and after treatment of the patients with antimicrobial drugs. The major observation was that PMN from patients with blastomycosis had a defect in stimulated locomotion. The specificity of the defect for blastomycosis was substantiated by the normal stimulated locomotion of PMN from uninfected control subjects or untreated patients with histoplasmosis, cryptococcosis, coccidioidomycosis, or sporotrichosis. The defect was due to a heat-stable, cell-directed, reversible serum inhibitor. In unheated or heated serum from untreated patients with blastomycosis, control PMN had decreased stimulated locomotion. Multiple washing followed by addition of control serum corrected locomotion of PMN from untreated patients with blastomycosis. The abnormality was not present in PMN from patients who had been treated with amphotericin B or had spontaneous resolution of their infections. Inhibition was not due to absence of chemoattractant activity because zymosan-activated patient serum or mixtures of patient and control serum stimulated PMN locomotion normally. The defect did not correlate with age, sex, neutrophil count, nitroblue tetrazolium reduction, serologic reactivity, or duration or severity of infection. No defect was found in bactericidal or metabolic activities of various combinations of PMN and serum from untreated or treated patients with blastomycosis or the 4 other fungal infections tested, indicating that the inhibitor was specific for stimulated locomotion.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1984

Development of specific immunity in patients with pulmonary or extrapulmonary blastomycosis.

The development of specific cellular-immune mechanisms has not been reported in human blastomycosis. We have examined lymphocyte stimulation to a fungal antigen before and during antifungal therapy in 16 patients with blastomycosis. Patients with pulmonary infection only did not have increased 3H-thymidine uptake on initial testing, but all 8 had vigorous lymphocyte stimulation as an indicator of cellular immunity after at least 2 wk of therapy. Patients with extrapulmonary blastomycosis had higher counts in response to the Blastomyces antigen before therapy. These tests differentiated between those with blastomycosis after therapy was started and normal persons or those with a nonfungal infection. Because of the delayed appearance, lymphocyte stimulation does not appear helpful for diagnosis of persons with untreated pulmonary blastomycosis, but in vitro correlates of cellular immunity developed in these patients in a similar time course as with other chronic infections.

Adult↗

PubMed1982

Blastomycosis.

Blastomycosis is the infection caused by the dimorphic fungus Blastomyces dermatitidis. The fungus was believed to be limited in distribution to North America but is found in Africa and northern South America, too. The exact natural habitat of B. dermatitidis is still uncertain with only rare reported isolation of the fungus from the environment. The inability to recover the organism from nature along with the absence of both a reliable skin test antigen and a sensitive serological test have significantly restricted our understanding of the epidemiology and the full clinical spectrum of blastomycosis. An accidental laboratory infection and several common source epidemics have enabled us to recognize that blastomycosis may be a self-limited pulmonary infection. Endogenous reactivation and opportunistic infections have been newly appreciated as clinical presentations of blastomycosis. This report will review blastomycosis with particular emphasis on these recent developments.

Adult↗

PubMed1978

Endogenous activation in blastomycosis.

Recent work established the fact that the portal of entry in blastomycosis is the lung. After the initial exposure to the fungus, a pneumonic process develops that may heal spontaneously or progress locally or at distant sites, or both. Frequently, however, patients present with disseminated disease, whose chest roentgenograms do not show any lesions. We have recently seen three patients with disseminated blastomycosis with negative chest roentgenograms at the time of diagnosis. Past history showed a pneumonic illness 33, 32, and 4 months before diagnosis. Chest roentgenograms from the time of the original illness showed a pneumonic process compatible with blastomycosis in all three. Examination of postbronchoscopy sputa showed the characteristic yeasts of Blastomyces dermatitidis. These three patients document for the first time apparent endogenous activation in blastomycosis. A possible explanation for this apparent endogenous activation may reside in the histopathologic similarity between blastomycosis and other chronic granulomatous diseases, especially tuberculosis.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1979

Canine blastomycosis as a harbinger of human disease.

Blastomycosis occurred in six patients in five households. In each instance one or more dogs living with the family or living near the family also developed blastomycosis. The recognition of canine blastomycosis helped in the early diagnosis of human cases. Because both dogs and patients were probably infected at the same place, canine blastomycosis may be an important epidemiologic marker, alerting physicians to the possible presence of concomitant blastomycosis in humans.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1991

Blastomycosis and opportunistic infections in patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome. An autopsy study.

Patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) are subject to a host of opportunistic infections, but to our knowledge a predisposition to blastomycosis has not previously been established. Autopsies of two patients with AIDS revealed disseminated blastomycosis with massive pulmonary involvement, Blastomyces meningoencephalitis, and widespread dissemination. The massive systemic involvement and rapid terminal course in both cases may reflect the state of acquired immunodeficiency. An analysis of an autopsy series showed that the incidence of blastomycosis was increased in patients with AIDS, although some other opportunistic organisms were more common (eg, Pneumocystis carinii, Mycobacterium avium-intracellulare, and Candida species). Thus, the diagnosis and treatment of blastomycosis must be pursued in patients with AIDS. Additional data are needed to further determine the incidence of blastomycosis in the population of patients with AIDS.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

PubMed1990

Blastomycosis: fungal infections of the lung update: 1989.

Three additions to the understanding of blastomycosis have been noted over the past several years. First, Blastomyces dermatitidis has now been grown from soil in association with epidemics of infection, indicating that microfoci of the organism exist in nature. Second, immune markers of previous infections have been used to help confirm that subclinical or asymptomatic cases occur in endemic areas. This is well recognized for other fungal infections, like histoplasmosis, and is increasingly recognized for blastomycosis. Third, alternatives to amphotericin B have been discovered effectively to treat clinical blastomycosis. Ketoconazole and itraconazole, which are orally absorbed imidazole antifungal agents, have been shown to be impressive antibiotics for blastomycosis that is less than life-threatening. Amphotericin B remains the agent of choice to treat patients with central nervous system or overwhelming blastomycosis.

Blastomycosis↗

PubMed1986

Immunodiagnosis of blastomycosis.

The diagnosis of blastomycosis has long been a challenge for the clinician. Primarily a pulmonary disease, blastomycosis is difficult to differentiate from other respiratory infections by clinical symptoms alone. Substantial improvement in the diagnosis of blastomycosis can be attributed to the availability of the purified A antigen of Blastomyces dermatitidis and its homologous antibody and the incorporation of these reagents into diagnostic tests. Reliable procedures for accurately and rapidly immunodiagnosing blastomycosis are available. These methods comprise enzyme immunoassay and immunodiffusion tests for detecting diagnostic serum antibody by B dermatitidis, the exoantigen test for identifying mycelial-form cultures of the etiologic agent, and the fluorescent antibody technique for detecting and identifying yeast-form cells in culture or in tissue. These tests, used alone or in combination, can in many cases provide an early and rapid definitive diagnosis of blastomycosis.

Blastomycosis↗

PubMed1987

Epidemiologic study of canine blastomycosis in Wisconsin.

An epidemiologic study was designed to investigate the increasing number of cases of canine blastomycosis being reported in Wisconsin. From January 1980 through July 1982, 200 cases of canine blastomycosis from 39 Wisconsin counties were examined to assess epidemiologic and environmental aspects of this disease. Based on a survey of 176 dog owners, principal disease characteristics for canine blastomycosis were anorexia, lethargy, shortness of breath, chronic cough, and weight loss. The greatest number of cases of canine blastomycosis was in the northwest, north central, northeast, central, and southeast regions of Wisconsin. The northeast and central regions were determined to be new enzootic areas. Sporting breeds accounted for the largest percentage of cases among the various breeds of dogs in Wisconsin. Most of the affected dogs were 3 years old or younger and there was no apparent sexual predilection. Canine blastomycosis was diagnosed more frequently from late spring through late fall. Enzootic areas, except for the southeast region of Wisconsin, were located where the soil was sandy and acid. The results of this study suggested a possible association of enzootic areas with waterways, especially impoundments.

Animals↗

PubMed1997

Therapy of blastomycosis.

Blastomycosis is a rare but important fungal infection that is diagnosed primarily in the south-central and midwestern United States. Although some patients have subclinical infection and are not treated, the majority of patients with a clinical diagnosis of blastomycosis are treated with antifungal agents. Amphotericin B is curative but, because of toxicity, oral agents have been examined as therapy. Ketoconazole was shown to be effective for less than overwhelming blastomycosis, but adverse effects were relatively common. Itraconazole is a triazole agent that is more effective than ketoconazole, because it is often effective when ketoconazole fails or after relapse of infection following a response to ketoconazole. Fluconazole is not as effective therapy for blastomycosis based on the need for much higher doses than with itraconazole. In a patient with lifethreatening or central nervous system blastomycosis, amphotericin B should be given.

Amphotericin B↗

PubMed1965

CORRELATION OF FLUORESCENT ANTIBODY, HISTOPATHOLOGY, AND CULTURE ON TISSUES FROM 372 ANIMALS EXAMINED FOR HISTOPLASMOSIS AND BLASTOMYCOSIS.

Porter, Billie M. (Communicable Disease Center, Kansas City, Kan.), Barbara K. Comfort, Robert W. Menges, Robert T. Habermann, and Coy D. Smith. Correlation of fluorescent antibody, histopathology, and culture on tissues from 372 animals examined for histoplasmosis and blastomycosis. J. Bacteriol. 89:748-751. 1965.-In a survey in the midwestern United States, tissues from 372 animals including 16 species were examined for Histoplasma capsulatum and Blastomyces dermatitidis. All of the specimens were cultured and studied by use of the fluorescent-antibody (FA) technique, and histopathological studies of tissue sections were done. Among the 372 animals, 300 were negative by all three methods of examination, 34 had blastomycosis, and 21 had histoplasmosis. The remaining 17 were positive for histoplasmosis with the FA technique but were negative by histopathology and culture. An animal was considered to have histoplasmosis or blastomycosis only when the specific fungus was isolated or demonstrated in tissue sections or exudates from cutaneous lesions. Of the 34 blastomycosis cases, 25 (74%) were positive by FA, 32 (94%) by histopathology, and 11 (32%) by culture. Of the 21 histoplasmosis cases, 15 (71%) were positive by FA, 16 (76%) by histopathology, and 14 (67%) by culture. It appeared that FA, histopathology, or culture alone was insufficient for a diagnosis. All three techniques should be employed for the most satisfactory diagnostic results.

Animals↗

PubMed1983

Blastomycosis of the larynx.

Blastomycosis is a chronic fungal disease with a constellation of signs and symptoms and a variable course. It primarily affects the lower respiratory tract, although extrapulmonary manifestations are common. We describe 6 patients with blastomycosis of the larynx who represent 5.6% of 107 patients with blastomycosis seen at the Mayo Clinic from 1950 through 1981. When involvement of the larynx occurs, both gross and histopathologic findings of the lesion usually resemble the features of well-differentiated squamous cell carcinoma and often lead to misdiagnosis and inappropriate, overly aggressive, surgical or radiation therapy. So that this unnecessarily aggressive treatment of the diseased larynx can be avoided, we discuss the clinical features, histopathologic findings, diagnosis, and current forms of treatment of blastomycosis.

Adult↗

PubMed2006

[Three cases of cutaneous blastomycosis].

Blastomycosis is a rare mycotic infection in Africa. Isolated cutaneous disease is extremely rare. We report three cases of cutaneous blastomycosis confirmed by istologic and mycologic examination. No visceral involvement was found. Blastomycosis is rare in Tunisia. The most common site of involvement is the lung. The three cases reported presented with skin involvement only, suggesting a cutaneous inoculation of Blastomyces dermatitidis. The diagnostic criteria of cutaneous blastomycosis are discussed.

Adolescent↗

PubMed1995

Blastomycosis of the eyelid.

BACKGROUND: Published reports indicate that eyelid involvement occurs in approximately 25% of patients with systemic blastomycosis and that mortality exceeds 60% in untreated patients. The purpose of this study is to investigate this purportedly frequent association. METHODS: The Medical Diagnostic index of the Mayo Clinic was used to identify patients who were treated for blastomycosis from 1976 through 1993. The medical records of affected patients were reviewed. RESULTS: Of 79 patients with blastomycosis, only 1 (1.27%; 95% confidence interval, 0.03%-6.85%) had eyelid involvement. The diagnosis of systemic disease was established in this patient after biopsy of the eyelid lesion, and the infection responded satisfactorily to treatment with itraconazole. CONCLUSION: Contrary to previous reports, eyelid involvement with systemic blastomycosis is uncommon.

Adult↗