Herpes simplex Virus Pneumonitis in an Acute/Subacute Paracoccidioidomycosis Patient With Malabsorption Syndrome. Case-Report and Literature Review

• Published in: Frontiers in fungal biology Vol. 2; p. 805502
• Main Authors: Cavalcante, Ricardo S., Souza, Bruno S., Duarte, Iverson X., Moraes, Marcelo P. T., Coelho, Kunie I. R., Griva, Beatriz L., Pereira, Beatriz A. S., Calvi, Sueli A., Betini, Marluci, Mendes, Rinaldo P.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Frontiers Media S.A 10.02.2022
• Subjects: Fungal Biology; Herpes simplex pneumonitis; herpetic infection and malnutrition; malnutrition; Paracoccidioides brasiliensis; paracoccidioidomycosis; paracoccidioidomycosis-herpetic infection comorbidity
• ISSN: 2673-6128; 2673-6128
• DOI: 10.3389/ffunb.2021.805502

Paracoccidioides sp.— Herpes simplex virus (HSV) co-infection was not reported until now and malabsorption syndrome is a rare complication of the acute/subacute form (AF) of paracoccidioidomycosis (PCM), characterized by life-threatening abnormalities, such as fat and protein loss, lymphopenia, ascites, and intense immunosuppression. A 21-year-old woman presented the PCM AF with intense involvement of the abdominal and intestinal lymphoid organs, which leads to the malabsorption syndrome and severe immunosuppression. This patient developed a fatal-disseminated HSV infection associated with the paracoccidioidal disease. This case demonstrates that, in addition to the antigen-specific immunosuppression, some PCM patients can present a generalized cell-mediated immune depression and endogenous infection of latent microorganisms. On the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of an association between PCM and HSV infection.