Journal of Clinical Case Reports

Fever, Rash and Fungemia in a Traveler from South China

Abstract

Osamuyimen Igbinosa, Krishna Dass and Glenn Wortmann

Introduction: Penicillium (Talaromyces) marneffei is a dimorphic fungus that is endemic in Southeast Asia and South China, but rarely seen the United States except in immunosuppressed patients who have had travel-related exposure. Case Presentation: A 28 year-old man with advanced HIV/AIDS presented with dyspnea, cough and fever two weeks after returning from Shenzhen, South China. He was treated for presumptive Pneumocystis jiroveci pneumonia with improvement in his symptoms and was then started on antiretroviral therapy. Three weeks later he developed rash and fever, and blood culture grew Penicillium (Talaromyces) marneffei. Conclusion: This case highlights the importance of obtaining a detailed travel history in order to incorporate travel-related diseases in a differential diagnosis.