TY - JOUR
T1 - Localization of aspergillosis to the central nervous system among patients with acute leukemia
T2 - Report of 14 cases
AU - Pagano, Livio
AU - Ricci, Paolo
AU - Montillo, Marco
AU - Cenacchi, Annarita
AU - Nosari, Annamaria
AU - Tonso, Anna
AU - Cudillo, Laura
AU - Chierichini, Anna
AU - Savignano, Chiara
AU - Buelli, Massimo
AU - Melillo, Lorella
AU - La Barbera, Elettra Ortu
AU - Sica, Simona
AU - Hohaus, Stefan
AU - Bonini, Alessandro
AU - Bucaneve, Giampaolo
AU - Del Favero, Albano
PY - 1996
Y1 - 1996
N2 - We retrospectively studied a consecutive series of 100 patients with acute leukemia and aspergillosis to evaluate the clinical findings and risk factors for colonization of the central nervous system (CNS) by Aspergillus species. The diagnosis of CNS aspergillosis was made in 14 patients on the basis of the following criteria: neurological signs of CNS involvement (13 of 14 patients); cerebral CT scan findings (9 of 12); microbiological findings (6 of 12); and histological findings at autopsy (11 of 11). The majority of patients had severe neurological complications (i.e., hemiparesis or seizures), due mainly to brain abscesses or mycetomas. Autopsies were performed on 11 of 14 patients and provided evidence that CNS localization was secondary to invasive aspergillosis; in each case, the most likely primary focus of infection was the lung. Although all patients had received oral antimycotic prophylaxis and had received timely empirical antifungal treatment, they all died within a median time of 5 days from the onset of neurological symptoms. Analysis of the characteristics of patients with invasive aspergillosis did not reveal any difference between those with CNS localization and those without CNS localization.
AB - We retrospectively studied a consecutive series of 100 patients with acute leukemia and aspergillosis to evaluate the clinical findings and risk factors for colonization of the central nervous system (CNS) by Aspergillus species. The diagnosis of CNS aspergillosis was made in 14 patients on the basis of the following criteria: neurological signs of CNS involvement (13 of 14 patients); cerebral CT scan findings (9 of 12); microbiological findings (6 of 12); and histological findings at autopsy (11 of 11). The majority of patients had severe neurological complications (i.e., hemiparesis or seizures), due mainly to brain abscesses or mycetomas. Autopsies were performed on 11 of 14 patients and provided evidence that CNS localization was secondary to invasive aspergillosis; in each case, the most likely primary focus of infection was the lung. Although all patients had received oral antimycotic prophylaxis and had received timely empirical antifungal treatment, they all died within a median time of 5 days from the onset of neurological symptoms. Analysis of the characteristics of patients with invasive aspergillosis did not reveal any difference between those with CNS localization and those without CNS localization.
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M3 - Article
C2 - 8879790
AN - SCOPUS:19244363194
VL - 23
SP - 628
EP - 630
JO - Clinical Infectious Diseases
JF - Clinical Infectious Diseases
SN - 1058-4838
IS - 3
ER -