Cerebral Phaeohyphomycosis Due to Cladophialophora bantiana – A Case Report and Review of Literature from India

Brain abscesses caused by Cladophialophora bantiana in a lung transplant patient: A case report and review of the literature

“…This is the second case of C. bantiana brain abscesses described in a lung transplant recipient and, to our best knowledge, is the first report of significant clinical and radiological improvement in a lung transplant patient, which may be considered cured C. bantiana brain abscesses because our patient survived under medical treatment alone . C. bantiana abscesses represent a rare and quick lethal infection in immunocompromised patients.…”

Cerebral Phaeohyphomycosis : A Rare Cause of Brain Abscess

“…CP is a rare infection caused by darkly pigmented fungi, namely dematiaceous fungi 23) . Dematiaceous fungi represent a group of filamentous molds that contain melanin pigment in their cell walls 3 , 6 , 14 , 17) .…”

“…Most agents are found in soil. Because of this, occupational predisposition has been reported in agricultural workers, especially farmers due to risk of soil exposure 17 , 23) . CP commonly occurs in the second and third decades of life with male predominance, except Rhinocladiella mackenziei which affects adults with a median age of 62 years without male predominance 3 , 13 , 23) .…”

“…The most unique characteristic of CP is its occurrence irrelevant to the immune status of the host 15 , 17 , 19 , 23) . Even though immunodeficiency may play a role as a risk factor, there are many reports of this infection in immunocompetent individuals similar to the patient in this report 12 , 15 , 17 , 19 , 25) .…”

“…However, cerebral phaeohyphomycosis (CP) caused by darkly pigmented fungi appears to be a common exception to this rule because about one-half of this fungal infection occurred in patients with no underlying disease or risk factors. CP is a very rare cause of brain abscess, but is often a fatal disease regardless of immune status 14 , 17 , 23) .…”