title: Calcium oxalate in the sputum may aid in the diagnosis of pulmonary aspergillosis: A report of two cases.
abstract: We present two cases of pulmonary aspergillosis in which calcium oxalate crystals in the sputum proved to be a useful diagnostic clue. In case 1, Aspergillus hyphae was not identified; however, calcium oxalate crystals were present, and chronic necrotizing pulmonary aspergillosis was diagnosed. In case 2, calcium oxalate was detected and Aspergillus fumigatus was identified later. Thus, the presence of calcium oxalate in the sputum may be an important indicator for an A. fumigatus infection.
authors.affiliation: Division of Infectious Disease, Tokyo Takanawa Hospital, Japan.
authors.forename: Tsutomu
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Maeno
authors.affiliation: Department of Bacteriological Laboratory, Toho University, Japan ; Department of Microbiology and Infectious Disease, Toho University Faculty of Medicine, Japan.
authors.forename: Masakazu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sasaki
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine I, Hokkaido University Hospital, Japan ; Department of Microbiology and Infectious Disease, Toho University Faculty of Medicine, Japan.
authors.forename: Yasushi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Shibue
authors.affiliation: Division of Infectious Disease, Ebara Hospital, Japan ; Department of Microbiology and Infectious Disease, Toho University Faculty of Medicine, Japan.
authors.forename: Kazuyuki
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Mimura
authors.affiliation: Division of Infectious Disease, Tokyo Takanawa Hospital, Japan ; Department of Microbiology and Infectious Disease, Toho University Faculty of Medicine, Japan.
authors.forename: Hideaki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Oka
keywords: Aspergillus fumigatus; Calcium oxalate; Pulmonary aspergillosis
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