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Case Reports
. 2015 Jul 7;7(2):136-40.
doi: 10.1159/000436989. eCollection 2015 May-Aug.

Primary Cutaneous Chrysosporium Infection following Ear Piercing: A Case Report

Poonkiat Suchonwanit  1 , Chayada Chaiyabutr  1 , Vasanop Vachiramon  1
Affiliations
Case Reports

Primary Cutaneous Chrysosporium Infection following Ear Piercing: A Case Report

Poonkiat Suchonwanit et al. Case Rep Dermatol. .

Abstract

Chrysosporium is a large genus of saprophytic fungi that is commonly found in the soil. Infection caused by this organism is rare in humans and typically occurs in immunocompromised patients. Primary cutaneous Chrysosporium infection is relatively rare and has been reported in a heart transplant patient. The prognosis is usually favorable, but very poor in the setting of persistent profound immunosuppression. We herein report a case of primary cutaneous Chrysosporium infection following ear piercing in an immunocompetent patient. It is important for clinicians to consider this condition in patients with slow-onset skin and soft tissue infection following cutaneous injury, even in an immunocompetent setting.

Keywords: Chrysosporium infection; Ear piercing; Hyalohyphomycosis.

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Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Erythematous, slightly edematous plaque and small nodules on the right ear pinna.
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
a Histology showing superficial and deep perivascular and nodular inflammatory cell infiltration (HE, ×100). b Non-pigmented septate hyphae within the granuloma (HE, ×600). c Periodic acid-Schiff stain highlighting the fungal hyphae (×600).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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