title: Phaeohyphomycosis: a clinical-epidemiological and diagnostic study of eighteen cases in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
abstract: The goal of this study was to review 18 cases of phaeohyphomycosis in Rio Grande do Sul. The records of all of the patients with a diagnosis of phaeohyphomycosis between 1995-2010 were reviewed. Twelve of the 18 patients (66.6%) were male. The average age of the patients was 50 years old (range: 16-74 years). Eleven patients (61%) presented with subcutaneous lesions. Seven patients (38.8%) had received a solid organ transplant. In all of the cases, the presence of melanin in the fungal cells was determined by Fontana-Masson staining of tissue sections and documented. Among the 18 patients, a total of 11 different fungal species were isolated. The causative organisms included Exophiala jeanselmei, Alternaria, Curvularia, Cladophialophora and Colletotrichum gloeosporioides. To our knowledge, this review reports the first case of subcutaneous phaeohyphomycosis caused by C. gloeosporioides in a lung transplant patient. The number of reported cases of phaeohyphomycosis has increased in the last decade. In a number of cases, this increased incidence may be primarily attributed to iatrogenic immunodeficiency.
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Micologia, Irmandade Santa Casa de Misericórdia de Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil. severo@pesquisador.cnpq.br
authors.forename: Cecília Bittencourt
authors.initials: CB
authors.lastname: Severo
authors.forename: Flávio de Mattos
authors.initials: Fde M
authors.lastname: Oliveira
authors.forename: Emily Ferreira Salles
authors.initials: EF
authors.lastname: Pilar
authors.forename: Luiz Carlos
authors.initials: LC
authors.lastname: Severo
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D020314:Central Nervous System Fungal Infections / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology; D003881:Dermatomycoses / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D016867:Immunocompromised Host; D016040:Lung Transplantation; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D060446:Phaeohyphomycosis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology / Q000473:pathology; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D055815:Young Adult