Disseminated cutaneous histoplasmosis with laryngeal involvement in a setting of immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome.

introductionHistoplasmosis is a systemic mycosis caused by the dimorphic fungus PATIENT PRESENTATION: A 39-year-old man presented with a three month history of asymptomatic papules and nodules with necrotic centres involving the centrofacial region. The patient was diagnosed as being HIV-positive a month earlier and was commenced on antiretroviral treatment. Two weeks after the development of skin lesions, the patient complained of a sore throat and hoarseness of his voice. A fibre-optic laryngoscopy and biopsies of the skin, larynx and liver were performed. MANAGEMENT AND OUTCOME: The CD4 counts increased from 2 cells/µL to 124 cells/µL, whereas the viral load decreased from one million to less than 20 copies/mL. A fibre-optic laryngoscopy revealed a supraglottitis with ulceration on the epiglottis. Histology of the liver, larynx and sections of the skin demonstrated pandermal necrotising granulomatous inflammation. Grocott-Gomori methenamine silver and Periodic acid-Schiff (PAS) stains revealed a relative paucity of intracellular, narrow-neck budding fungal organisms. Culture findings confirmed the diagnosis of histoplasmosis. The patient was treated with intravenous amphotericin B for two weeks followed by oral itraconazole 100 mg twice a day, with an excellent response to treatment.

conclusionWe present this case to remind clinicians that disseminated histoplasmosis in AIDS patients may occur as an expression of IRIS. A sudden onset of hoarseness with cutaneous lesions in a patient with disseminated disease should alert one to possible laryngeal histoplasmosis. Prompt recognition and treatment will avert the potential fatal complications of this disease.