Penicillium marneffei infection in a lung transplant recipient

Transpl Infect Dis. 2015 Jun;17(3):429-34. doi: 10.1111/tid.12377. Epub 2015 May 19.

Abstract

Penicillium marneffei is a thermally dimorphic fungus that can cause severe opportunistic infections in endemic regions of Southeast Asia, particularly in individuals infected with human immunodeficiency virus-1, but has rarely been reported in solid organ transplant recipients. Herein, we report the first case, to our knowledge, of P. marneffei infection in a lung transplant recipient, occurring in a 41-year-old woman 28 months post lung transplantation, after recent travel to Vietnam. We have reviewed the literature to derive some management principles for this rare infection in this clinical context. The number of P. marneffei infections in transplant recipients may increase, as a result of increasing rates of transplantation and travel to endemic areas.

Keywords: Penicillium marneffei; Talaromyces marneffei; itraconazole; liposomal amphotericin B; renal transplant; travel; voriconazole.

Publication types

  • Case Reports
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Antifungal Agents / administration & dosage*
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Lung Transplantation*
  • Mycoses / diagnostic imaging
  • Mycoses / microbiology*
  • Penicillium / isolation & purification*
  • Transplant Recipients
  • Travel
  • Treatment Outcome
  • Vietnam
  • Voriconazole / administration & dosage*

Substances

  • Antifungal Agents
  • Voriconazole