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Blastomycosis Definition

There are many diseases and infections floating around that can make people sick. Some diseases are very rare, but can still cause major complications if left untreated. One such disease is blastomycosis, a fungal disease that is very rare but can be very serious for a person who contracts it.

  1. Features

    • Blastomycosis is an infection caused by Blastomyces dermatitidis, a fungus found in wood and soil. A person develops this infection by inhaling the fungus. It is very rare, seen in only one or two people out of every 100,000 (0.001 to 0.002 percent). This percentage is even smaller in areas where the fungus does not thrive. According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), blastomycosis mostly "occurs in people living in the south-central and midwestern United States and Canada."

    Affected Groups

    • You are more likely to contract the disease if you are around infected soil. There is also a greater chance of becoming sick if you have a weakened immune system. This includes people who have the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), which destroys the immune system, or someone who has had a major operation, such as an organ transplant. NIH also claims that men are more likely to become affected by the fungus than women.

    Symptoms

    • Symptoms may not appear right away when only the lungs are infected. However, symptoms such as skin or bone sores show up when the infection spreads. Other parts of the body can also be affected by the disease, including the bladder, kidney, prostate and testes. In addition to skin and bone sores, a person may also suffer from chest pain, cough, fever, stiff joints and muscles, weight loss, rash, trouble breathing and fatigue.

    Identification

    • Exams and tests determine whether a person has blastomycosis. A doctor may perform a chest x-ray, which allows her to examine the chest, lungs, heart, large arteries, ribs and diaphragm. A skin or tissue biopsy is another test performed to look for the disease. This means removing a small piece of skin or tissue for laboratory examination. A sputum culture is another test for blastomycosis, in which secretions from the lungs and bronchi are examined under a microscope.

    Treatment and Outlook

    • According to NIH, antifungal medications are used to treat blastomycosis. These include fluconazole, itraconazole and ketoconazole. More severe infections may require amphotericin B. However, if the disease has not spread beyond the lungs, there may be no need for any type of medication. Treatment is important, because even though people with mild infections usually recover, a severe untreated infection can eventually lead to death.

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