Abstract
A case of pulmonary histoplasmosis, which is rare in Japan, is reported herein. A 43-year-old man who had worked in Mexico for 2 years and had come back to Japan 3 months earlier, presented at our hospital because of an abnormal shadow on his chest roentogenogram with no symptoms. His chest roentogenogram as well as chest computed tomograms revealed a 2-cm-diameter nodule in the anterior basal segment of his right lung and an enlargement of the subcarinal lymph node. Although these pictures seemed to indicate an advanced lung cancer, no malignant cells were found based on the brushing cytology findings after bronchoscopy. An exploratory thoracoscopic tumor resection and biopsy of the enlarged lymph node led to a histological diagnosis of an abscess due to histoplasma. The hospital course was uneventful. Postoperatively, amphotericin B was administered for 1 year. This is the eighth case of pulmonary histoplasmosis reported in Japan. A pulmonary nodule together with mediastinal lymphoadenopathy seems to be characteristic in these patients. Histoplasmosis should therefore be considered in the differential diagnosis, since overseas travel has now become common-place for the Japanese.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Trigt PV (1990) Lung infections and diffuse interstitial lung disease. In: Sabinston DC Jr, Spencer FC (eds) Surgery of the chest (5th edn). Saunders, Philadelphia, pp 615–670
Suzaki A, Kimura M, Kimura S, Shimada K, Miyaji M, Kaufman L (1995) An outbreak of acute pulmonary histoplasmosis among travelers to a bat-inhabited cave in Brazil (in Japanese). Kansenshogaku-Zasshi 69:444–449
Hirsch D, Leupold W, Rupprecht E (1996) Pulmonary histoplasmoma after travel abroad (in German). Pneumologie 50:242–244
Wang TL, Cheah JS, Holmberg K (1996) Case report and review of disseminated histoplasmosis in South-East Asia: clinical and epidemiological implications. Trop Med Int Health 1:35–42
Wen FQ, Sun YD, Watanabe K, Yoshida M, Wu JN, Baum GL (1996) Prevalence of histoplasmin sensitivity in healthy adults and tuberculosis patients in southwest China. J Med Vet Mycol 34:171–174
Sarosi GA, Davies SF (1996) Endemic mycosis complicating human immunodeficiency virus infection. West J Med 164:335–340
Maxson S, Jacobs RF (1996) Community-acquired fungal pneumonia in children. Semin Respir Infect 11:196–203
Gurney JW, Conces DJ (1996) Pulmonary histoplasmosis. Radiology 199:297–306
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Endo, S., Murayama, F., Yamaguchi, T. et al. Pulmonary histoplasmosis in a Japanese male: Report of a case. Surg Today 28, 1316–1318 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02482825
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02482825