[A case report on aspergillosis of the sphenoid sinus]

Abstract

Aspergillosis of the paranasal sinus usually affects the maxillary sinus and isolated aspergillosis of the sphenoid sinus is less frequent. Aspergillosis of the paranasal sinus has been generally classified into the non-invasive type and the invasive type. There is controversy whether such difference of invasion depends on impairment of the host's immunological function or aspergillus offense factors. We report three cases of aspergillosis of the sphenoid sinus affecting individuals whose immunological states were different from each other. The prognosis among these cases was also different. These three cases suggest that the difference in the degree of aspergillus invasion may depend on the immunological state of each patient. Therefore, immediate diagnosis and therapy are very important for paranasal aspergillosis in the immunocompromised patient.