PULMONARY SPOROTRICHOSIS WITH HYPHAE IN A HUMAN IMMUNODEFICIENCY VIRUS-INFECTED PATIENT - A CASE-REPORT

BACKGROUND: Pulmonary sporotrichosis is a rare event. Sporothrix schen ckii is a dimorphic fungus and develops at 37 degrees C in yeast form. Usually hyphae are not observed in tissues, although their presence h as been occasionally demonstrated in biopsies. CASE: A 37-year-old man , human immunodeficiency virus-1 positive, with a CD4 cell count of 34 5/mm(3), developed a productive cough. A sputum smear revealed the pre sence of a large amount of long, thin, septated micelia. The hyphae bo re oval, sessile conidia. Cultures of sputum yielded numerous colonies of S schenckii. CONCLUSION: This is the first report of hyphae of S s chenckii in sputum. This case emphasizes the possibilities of cytology for the diagnosis of mycotic infections. Fungi have typical morpholog ies, and if is possible, on the basis of microscopic evidence, to susp ect the nature of the infection early and thus to direct culture proce dures.