Cryptococcosis

Common card · No. 360987

Cryptococcosis is a potentially fatal fungal infection of mainly the lungs, presenting as a pneumonia, and in the brain, where it appears as a meningitis. Coughing, difficulty breathing, chest pain and fever are seen when the lungs are infected. When the brain is infected, symptoms include headache, fever, neck pain, nausea and vomiting, light sensitivity and confusion or changes in behavior. It can also affect other parts of the body including skin, where it may appear as several fluid-filled nodules with dead tissue. It is caused by the fungi Cryptococcus neoformans or less commonly Cryptococcus gattii, and is acquired by breathing in the spores from the air. These fungi are found globally in soil, decaying wood, pigeon droppings, and in the hollows of some species of trees. Whereas C. neoformans generally infects people with HIV/AIDS and those on immunosuppressant drugs and does not usually affect fit and healthy people, C. gattii (found in some parts of Canada and the US) does. Once...

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