CRIPTOCOCCOSI CUTANEA SECONDARIA IN HIV POSITIVI

Two cases of secondary cutaneous cryptococcosis in HIV positive patients are reported. The first case presented with a roundish ulceration on his right arm and two groups of papulonodular lesions on his right shoulder and back mimicking a corymbiform syphilid. The second case showed a papulonodular eruption on his head, neck, and upper limbs which looked like a molluscum contagiosum disseminatum. In both patients, light microscopy revealed aspects of fungal colonization of the dermis without any granulomatous infiltration. According to the authors, the reported cases can be regarded as typical examples of the clinical variability and histopathologic uniformity of secondary cutaneous cryptococcosis in subjects with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome.