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Schizophillum commune Causing Sinusitis with Nasal Polyposis in the Sub-Himalayan Region: First Case Report and Review

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Abstract

Schizophillum commune is an environmental fungus rarely causing human infections of diverse nature. Sinusitis occurs in immunocompromised persons and seldom in healthy subjects. Though easily isolated, the lack of awareness of its virulence is a bottleneck in the diagnosis of this infection. We report the first case of S. commune sinusitis with nasal polyps in an immunocompetent male from the sub-Himalayan region. The computerized tomography scan findings established the clinical diagnosis, and causative agent was confirmed as S. commune. A white, woolly mold with septate, hyaline hyphae and characteristic spicules but unclamped connections suggested a monokaryotic isolate. Patient was treated successfully with fiberoptic endoscopic sinus surgery, and no antifungal therapy was instituted. There was no recurrence at review after 1 year.

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Acknowledgments

The authors gratefully acknowledge the contribution of Prof. Arunaloke Chakrabarti (Head, Dept. of Microbiology and National Centre for Collection of Pathogenic Fungi, PGIMER, Chandigarh) toward identification and confirmation of the isolate as S. commune.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Microbiology, Indira Gandhi Medical College, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, India

    Santwana Verma, Poonam Gupta, Digvijay Singh & Anil Kanga

  2. Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Indira Gandhi Medical College, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, India

    N. K. Mohindroo

  3. Department of Radiodiagnosis, Indira Gandhi Medical College, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, India

    Anupam Jhobta

  4. Department of Microbiology, Lady Hardinge Medical College, New Delhi, India

    Poonam Gupta

  5. Department of ENT, Indira Gandhi Medical College, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, India

    N. K. Mohindroo

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  1. Santwana Verma
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  2. Poonam Gupta
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  3. Digvijay Singh
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  4. Anil Kanga
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Correspondence to Poonam Gupta.

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Verma, S., Gupta, P., Singh, D. et al. Schizophillum commune Causing Sinusitis with Nasal Polyposis in the Sub-Himalayan Region: First Case Report and Review. Mycopathologia 177, 103–110 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11046-013-9717-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11046-013-9717-1

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