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Transmission of Paracoccidioides spp. fungi to humans is usually related to manipulation of soil. Rural workers are the most affected group. We report an outbreak of paracoccidioidomycosis after deforestation and massive earth removal during construction of a highway in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Extensive environmental disturbances might be involved in fungal transmission.

Paracoccidioidomycosis is the major systemic mycosis in Latin America and the leading fungal cause of death in immunocompetent persons in Brazil (1,2). Paracoccidioidomycosis is a neglected disease whose prevalence and [...]

Transmission of Paracoccidioides spp. fungi to humans is usually related to manipulation of soil. Rural workers are the most affected group. We report an outbreak of paracoccidioidomycosis after deforestation and massive earth removal during construction of a highway in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Extensive environmental disturbances might be involved in fungal transmission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Evidence is increasing that Zika virus can cause extensive damage to the central nervous system, affecting both fetuses and adults. We sought to identify traces of possible clinical manifestations of nervous system diseases among the registers of hospital admissions recorded in the Brazilian Unified Health System. Time series of several diagnoses from the International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision, were analyzed by using control diagrams, during January 2008–February 2016. Beginning in mid-2014, we observed an unprecedented and significant rise in the hospitalization rate for congenital malformations of the nervous system, Guillain-Barré syndrome, encephalitis, myelitis, and encephalomyelitis. These conditions are compatible with viral infection and inflammation-associated manifestations and may have been due to the entrance of Zika virus into Brazil. These findings show the necessity of adequately diagnosing and treating suspected cases of Zika virus infection and also that health surveillance systems can be improved by using routine data.