1. Disseminated pneumocystosis presenting as a pleural effusion.
- Author
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Jayes RL, Kamerow HN, Hasselquist SM, Delaney MD, and Parenti DM
- Subjects
- Administration, Inhalation, Adult, Humans, Injections, Intravenous, Male, Pentamidine administration & dosage, Pentamidine therapeutic use, Pleural Effusion drug therapy, Pleural Effusion pathology, Pneumocystis Infections drug therapy, Pleural Effusion microbiology, Pneumocystis Infections pathology
- Abstract
Extrapulmonary pneumocystosis recently has been reported in a number of tissues. Most cases occurred in patients receiving aerosolized pentamidine prophylaxis. We report a case of disseminated pneumocystosis presenting as a large pleural effusion without apparent lung involvement where Pneumocystis carinii was the only pathogen identified. The absence of parenchymal lesions on chest x-ray film, the lack of hypoxemia and the minimal uptake of gallium all argue against significant lung involvement. The patient was successfully treated with chest tube drainage, intravenous and inhaled pentamidine and orally administered dapsone and trimethoprim. The addition of inhaled pentamidine to intravenously administered pentamidine may have increased pleural fluid levels substantially and its use coincided with the patient's improvement.
- Published
- 1993
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