Pulmonary coinfection by Trichomonas vaginalis and Pneumocystis sp. as a novel manifestation of AIDS.
A 41-year-old man was hospitalized, presenting increasing dyspnea and extensive ground-glass opacities on chest X-ray. Infection by human immunodeficiency virus was confirmed. Cytologic examination of bronchoalveolar lavage fluid revealed numerous trichomonads and aggregates of Pneumocystis sp. Treatment was followed by rapid improvement of respiratory symptoms and chest X-ray. The trichomonad species found in the lungs was identified as Trichomonas vaginalis by small-subunit rRNA gene amplification and sequencing. With the exception of rare cases of contamination of newborn babies during delivery, T. vaginalis has never been found in lungs in healthy or immunocompromised adults. In the present case, T. vaginalis is found as coinfecting agent. Our data, like those found in the literature, suggest that trichomonads are overlooked parasites that may be regularly implicated in diverse human pathologies.
Duboucher
Christophe
C
Department of Pathology, Pneumology, Infectioud Diseases and Bacteriology, Saint-Germain-en-Laye Hospital, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France.
Noël
Christophe
C
Durand-Joly
Isabelle
I
Gerbod
Delphine
D
Delgado-Viscogliosi
Pilar
P
Jouveshomme
Stéphane
S
Leclerc
Catherine
C
Cartolano
Gian-Luigi
GL
Dei-Cas
Eduardo
E
Capron
Monique
M
Viscogliosi
Eric
E
D017088:AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000469:parasitology; D000163:Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome / Q000150:complications*; D000328:Adult; D000818:Animals; D001992:Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid / Q000469:parasitology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014245:Trichomonas Infections / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology; D014246:Trichomonas vaginalis / Q000302:isolation & purification*