Systemic mycoses in immunodepressed patients (AIDS)

Marcia Ramos-e-Silva1, Cíntia Maria Oliveira Lima, Regina Casz Schechtman

  • 1Sector of Dermatology and Graduate Course in Dermatology, University Hospital and School of Medicine, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rua Dona Mariana 143/C-32, 22280-020 Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. ramos.e.silva@dermato.med.br

Clinics in Dermatology
|October 17, 2012
PubMed

Infectious and noninfectious skin diseases are observed in about 90% of HIV patients, and their incidence increases and is more severe as the immune system weakens. Cutaneous manifestations are considered good clinical predictors for the immunological condition of the patient with AIDS and the introduction of highly effective antiretroviral therapy totally changed the prognosis of the mycoses, among other diseases associated with AIDS, permitting longer survival and acceptable level of quality of life for these patients. This contribution describes the systemic mycoses that are more frequent in the seropositive population, that is, patients with HIV/AIDS, which are cryptococcosis, histoplasmosis, coccidioidomycosis, blastomycosis, paracoccidioidomycosis, sporotrichosis, penicilliosis, and aspergillosis. Their causative agents, mode of transmission, clinics, laboratorial diagnosis and therapy, in the aspects related to immunodepressed patients, are reviewed.

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