Subcutaneous phaeohyphomycosis: a histopathological study of nine cases from Malawi

The clinical and histopathological features of subcutaneous phaeohyphomycosis in nine patients from Malawi are presented. The patients had varied clinical presentations and microscopically, in each case, there was a subcutaneous abscess or cystic granuloma. In seven cases (78%) the causative fungal elements were easily identified in sections stained with haematoxylin and eosin. The fungal elements were easily identified in the other two cases with special fungus stains. The misleading terminology, which was used previously to cover this infection, is discussed. Even though this paper reports on this disease in a tropical country, subcutaneous phaeohyphomycosis occurs world wide, and these fungi should be looked for in otherwise unexplained subcutaneous abscesses or cystic granulomata.