Abstract
Blastomycosis is a chronic fungal infection often diagnosed in the south-central and midwestern United States. Lungs are primarily involved, with lymphatic or hematogenous spread to other organs. Bronchoscopy is considered when the noninvasive tests fail to establish the diagnosis. We describe bronchoscopic finding of blastomycosis involving the upper and lower respiratory tract. Inhaled steroids may have suppressed cellular immunity, allowing fungus to grow in the submucosa with histology significant for extensive eosinophilic infiltration. To our knowledge, such a detailed pictorial description of pulmonary blastomycosis with a cobblestone appearance of the tracheobronchial mucosa has not been reported in the past.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 266-269 |
Number of pages | 4 |
Journal | Journal of Bronchology and Interventional Pulmonology |
Volume | 16 |
Issue number | 4 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Oct 2009 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Blastomycosis
- Cobblestone mucosa
- Fungal infections in midwestern United States
- Fungal infections in south-central United States
- Pulmonary blastomycosis
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Pulmonary and Respiratory Medicine