A couple returning from Peru with persistent fever: think of histoplasmosis

Steven Van Den Broucke; Peter Bogaerts; Nicolas Vrydaghs; Isabel Micalessi; Marjan Van Esbroeck; Emmanuel Bottieau

doi:10.1016/j.ijid.2021.10.039

A couple returning from Peru with persistent fever: think of histoplasmosis

Int J Infect Dis. 2021 Dec:113:268-270. doi: 10.1016/j.ijid.2021.10.039. Epub 2021 Oct 29.

Authors

Steven Van Den Broucke¹, Peter Bogaerts², Nicolas Vrydaghs³, Isabel Micalessi⁴, Marjan Van Esbroeck⁴, Emmanuel Bottieau⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Clinical Sciences, Institute of Tropical Medicine Antwerp, Belgium. Electronic address: svandenbroucke@itg.be.
² Internal Medicine, Pneumologie, AZ Klina Brasschaat, Belgium.
³ Clinical Biology, AZ Kina Brasschaat, Belgium.
⁴ Department of Clinical Sciences, Institute of Tropical Medicine Antwerp, Belgium.
⁵ Department of Clinical Sciences, Institute of Tropical Medicine Antwerp, Belgium. Electronic address: ebottieau@itg.be.

PMID: 34715360
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijid.2021.10.039

Abstract

A couple presented with fever and strikingly similar symptoms starting exactly on the same day after returning from an adventurous journey in Peru. Symptom onset was 12 days after exposure to bats from a hollow tree. The further evolution underscores the disparate disease course of Histoplasmosis in different individuals, despite similar radiological findings. Our case highlights the importance of careful history taking in returning travelers since exposure to bat (or fowl) excrement can be easily overlooked.

Publication types

Case Reports

MeSH terms

Animals
Chiroptera*
Fever / etiology
Histoplasmosis* / diagnosis
Histoplasmosis* / drug therapy
Humans
Peru
Travel