Abstract
Talaromyces marneffei, previously known as Penicillium marneffei, is the most important pathogenic thermally dimorphic fungus causing systemic mycosis in Southeast Asia. Traditionally, T. marneffei infection in human was mainly associated with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome caused by HIV infection. In recent years, there has been an increasing number of T. marneffei infections reported in non-HIV-infected patients with other immunocompromised conditions, including autoantibodies against interferon-gamma, systemic lupus erythematosis, solid organ transplantation, Job’s syndrome, hematological malignancies, and use of novel targeted therapies. In this article, we describe the first case of fatal T. marneffei infection in a patient with underlying autoimmune hepatitis, presented as fever without localizing features. The diagnosis of talaromycosis was confirmed with the identification of the fungi isolated from the blood culture specimen by conventional methods and using matrix-assisted laser desorption–ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometer. This case shows the importance of a high index of suspicion, particularly for such a highly fatal but potentially treatable fungal infection.
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Acknowledgements
This work was partly supported by the Health and Medical Research Fund [No. HKM-15-M07 (commissioned project)], Food and Health Bureau, Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, Hong Kong, and the Strategic Research Theme Fund of The University of Hong Kong.
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Wong, S.C.Y., Sridhar, S., Ngan, A.H.Y. et al. Fatal Talaromyces marneffei Infection in a Patient with Autoimmune Hepatitis. Mycopathologia 183, 615–618 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11046-017-0239-0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11046-017-0239-0