Central Nervous System Blastomycosis Diagnosed using the MVista® Blastomyces Quantitative Antigen Enzyme Immunoassay Test on Cerebrospinal Fluid: A Case Report and Review of the Literature

Publication date: Available online 31 October 2017
Source:Diagnostic Microbiology and Infectious Disease
Author(s): Andrew Walkty, Yoav Keynan, James Karlowsky, Perry Dhaliwal, John Embil
Blastomyces dermatitidis is a thermally dimorphic fungus that is capable of causing pulmonary and extra-pulmonary disease, including infections of the central nervous system (CNS). Diagnosis of CNS blastomycosis with non-invasive testing can be difficult, and a surgical biopsy may ultimately be required for microbiological and/or histopathological confirmation. A case of B. dermatitidis meningitis is presented where the diagnosis was made by testing cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) using the MVista® Blastomyces Quantitative Antigen Enzyme Immunoassay test. The utility of performing this test on CSF for diagnosis of CNS mass lesions/abscesses caused by B. dermatitidis in the absence of associated meningitis remains unclear. Cross reaction of the Blastomyces antigen test with other dimorphic fungi is a concern, necessitating that positive test results are interpreted in the context of the patient's exposure and travel history.



from ! ORL Sfakianakis via paythelady.61 on Inoreader http://ift.tt/2hrLHnA
via IFTTT