Fatal disseminated Conidiobolus coronatus infection in a renal transplant patient

A case of fatal disseminated fungal infection due to Conidiobolus coronatus in a patient with a renal transplant is described. This organism, known to cause localized infections in otherwise healthy individuals in the tropics, is now recognized as a cause of fatal infection in immunosuppressed hosts. Histologically, localized infections are characterized by lack of vessel invasion and the presence of an eosinophilic sleeve around fungal elements, called the Splendore-Hoeppli phenomenon. The histologic findings in the present case were more typical of mucormycosis, and the correct diagnosis was established only after the organism was isolated and identified in culture.