RT Book, Section
A1 Hakim, Hana
A1 Gaur, Aditya H.
A2 Rudolph, Colin D.
A2 Rudolph, Abraham M.
A2 Lister, George E.
A2 First, Lewis R.
A2 Gershon, Anne A.
SR Print(0)
ID 7023943
T1 Chapter 242. Fungal Respiratory Infections
T2 Rudolph's Pediatrics, 22e
YR 2011
FD 2011
PB The McGraw-Hill Companies
PP New York, NY
SN 978-0-07-149723-7
LK accesspediatrics.mhmedical.com/content.aspx?aid=7023943
RD 2024/04/25
AB Fungi  are  ubiquitous  in  our  environment  and  uncommon  respiratory  pathogens  in  the  immunocompetent  host;  they  usually  present  with  no  or  mild  symptoms  that  are  self-limiting.  In  an  immunocompromised  host  these  infections  can  be  associated  with  significant  morbidity  and  mortality.Given  that  most  symptomatic  fungal  infections  present  with  nonspecific  findings,  early  diagnosis  requires  a  high  index  of  suspicion,  close  attention  to  a  patient’s  clinical  course,  and  interpretation  of  the  patient’s  findings  within  the  context  of  host  immune  status.  They  are  categorized  into  two  groups—those  that  cause  endemic  mycoses  and  those  classified  as  opportunistic  pathogens  (Table  242-1).  Included  under  endemic  mycosis  are  two  fungi,  Sporothrix  schenckii  and  Penicillium  marneffei,  that  are  not  always  thought  of  in  this  category  but  that  share  some  similarities  with  others  in  this  group.  Included  as  an  opportunistic  pathogen  is  Pneumocystis  jirovecii,  an  organism  previously  called  Pneumocystic  carinii  and  at  one  time  thought  to  be  protozoa.