No abstract available.
Chromoblastomycosis* ; Japan*

Chromoblastomycosis is an endemic mycoses which has been misdiagnosed or underdiagnosed in the past. This may be due to the clinicopathologic characteristics that it shares with other neglected tropical diseases such as leprosy and cutaneous tuberculosis. Correlating clinical findings with histopathologic cues will lead clinicians to correct diagnosis and subsequent treatment success.
Chromoblastomycosis ; Invasive Fungal Infections ; Itraconazole

Chromoblastomycosis, a chronic fungal infection of the skin and subcutaneous tissue, is known to be difficult to treat. Recently itraconazole has proved effective for treatment of this infection, but requires a prolonged treatment course. We experienced a case of chromoblastomycosis caused by Fonsecaea pedrosoi in a 68-year-old Korean man showing a complete resolution with a short course of oral itraconazole, 200 mg daily, for six weeks.
Aged ; Chromoblastomycosis* ; Humans ; Itraconazole* ; Skin ; Subcutaneous Tissue

The reports on the subcutaneous infection cases by the opportunistic fungi, reported in Korean Journal of Dermatology, Annals of Dermatology and Korean Journal of Medical Mycology from 1960 to 1999, were summarized. The opportunistic subcutaneous fungal diseases were cryptococcosis, aspergillosis, mucormycosis, pheohypomycosis, pseudallescheriasis, chromomycosis, paecilomycosis, fusariosis, sporotrichosis. Only two cases were the systemic infection with cutaneous manifestations and the others were the primary cutaneous infection. Besides sporotrichosis, all the fungal diseases began to be reported since 1980's. The total number of the cases was insidiously increased.
Aspergillosis ; Chromoblastomycosis ; Cryptococcosis ; Dermatology ; Fungi ; Fusariosis ; Mucormycosis ; Mycology ; Sporotrichosis

Medical mycology has gone through five distinct eras: 1) Fungi causing dermatophytoses, 2) Discovery of rare and fatal systemic mycoses, 3) Realization that fungi cause common and subclinical diseases, 4) AIDS and the era of the compromised host, 5) Broad-spectrum antifungals with few side effects. Chromoblastomycosis caused by a group of dematiaceous fungi is a common disease in china. To date almost 500 cases have been repoted. This article aims to introduce epidemiology, microbiology, clinical features, laboratory diagnosis and treatment of chromoblastomycosis in china.
China ; Chromoblastomycosis ; Clinical Laboratory Techniques ; Fungi ; Mycology ; Mycoses ; Tinea

Phaeohyphomycosis is a subcutaneous and systemic infection caused by dark-walled hyphae and differs from chromoblastomycosis in that it has no sclerotic cells. It commonly occurs in a immunosuppressed host. Exophiala dermatitidis, common pathogen of phaeohyphomycosis, has been commonly reported in Japan, but very rare in Korea. This report describes a case of phaeohyphomycosis due to Exophiala dermatitidis successfully treated with itraconazole.
Chromoblastomycosis ; Exophiala* ; Hyphae ; Immunocompromised Host ; Itraconazole* ; Japan ; Korea ; Phaeohyphomycosis*

In recent years, there has been a rapid decrease in amphibian populations worldwide, and infectious diseases have been associated with this decline. Diseased frogs inhabiting Korea were collected from fields, and the diseases were identified by morphological and molecular analyses. Two fungal diseases-saprolegniasis and chromomycosis-were detected in the frogs. Saprolegniasis caused by Saprolegnia spp. was found in Rana plancyi chosenica from Gangwon-do and Rana huanrenensis from Chungbuk. Chromomycosis, which is caused by infection with Cladosporium cladosporioides, was detected in Rana catesbeiana from Busan.
Amphibians ; Chromoblastomycosis ; Cladosporium ; Communicable Diseases ; Korea ; Rana catesbeiana ; Ranidae ; Saprolegnia

We report a case of chromoblastomycosis in a 65 year-old woman. She had a 3x4 cm sized, annular, erythematous, plaque with crusts and ulcers on the right lower arm. The lesion had grown slowly for 2 years. In fungal and histopathologic examinations, several muriform cells were found in dermis as well as in scales and crusts on the lesional skin surface. Isolated fungus was identified as Fonsecaea pedrosoi. We treated the patient occlusive dressing of amphotericin B (3%) ointment for 8 weeks and achieved a good response without any evidence of recurrence. We propose that the occlusive dressing therapy of amphotericin B cream is a good modality among the various treatments of small localized chromoblastomycosis.
Aged ; Amphotericin B* ; Arm ; Chromoblastomycosis* ; Dermis ; Female ; Fungi ; Humans ; Occlusive Dressings* ; Recurrence ; Skin ; Ulcer ; Weights and Measures

We report a case of chromoblastomycosis caused by Fonsecaea(F.) pedrosoi in a 58-year-old female, who showed a 2 x1.5cm sized, scply erythematous plaque on the left wrist for 7 months. Histopathologically, chronic granulomatous inflammation and sclerotic cells were observed. Fungal culture grew out th typical black colonies of F. pedrosoi. The patient had been treated with weekly intralesional injections of amphotericin B for 3 months. We observed a good response without evidence of recurrence.
Amphotericin B ; Chromoblastomycosis* ; Female ; Humans ; Inflammation ; Injections, Intralesional ; Middle Aged ; Recurrence ; Wrist

BACKGROUND: There are three kinds of diseases caused by dematiaceous fungi: chromoblastomycosis, phaeohyphomycosis, and eumycotic mycetoma. The dematiaceous fungi have been identified and classified by morphological, biochemical and physiological tests. Recently molecular analysis has been introduced to the field of medical mycology. OBJECTIVE: We investigated the genetic diversity of dematiaceous fungi using random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD). METHODS: The dematiaceous fungal strains studied were eight clinical isolates of chromoblastomycosis and phaeohyphomycosis agents (3 strains of Fonsecaea pedrosoi, 2 strains of Exophiala dermatitidis, 1 strain of Exophiala jeanselmei, 1 strain of Phialophora verrucosa, 1 strain of Rhinocladiella aquaspersa) and 4 standard strains (F. pedrosoi IFM 4889, E. dermatitidis IFM 4828, P. verrucosa IFM 4928, R. aquaspersa IFM 4930). Total twelve strains of dematiaceous fungi were cultured on Sabouraud's dextrose broth and their DNA were extracted by bead-beating method. RESULTS: The optimal condition for PCR was template DNA 0.025 mg and annealing temperature 39 degrees C. The RAPD analysis using OPA 10 primer (5'-GTGATCGCAG-3') of Operon kit showed different patterns among dematiaceous fungi. But one clinical isolate of F. pedrosoi showed intra-specific variability. CONCLUSION: The RAPD analysis is considered a rapid and reliable method for identification and classification of dematiaceous fungi if the procedure is carefully standardized with adequate primer.
Chromoblastomycosis ; Classification ; DNA* ; Exophiala ; Fungi* ; Genetic Variation* ; Glucose ; Mycetoma ; Mycology ; Operon ; Phaeohyphomycosis ; Phialophora ; Polymerase Chain Reaction