Paracoccidioidomycosis in people living with HIV/AIDS: A historical retrospective cohort study in a national reference center for infectious diseases, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Paracoccidioidomycosis (PCM) is one of the main endemic systemic mycoses in Latin America, usually occurring in rural areas. When PCM occurs simultaneously with underlying immunosuppressive conditions, it can present as an opportunistic disease. Between 2000 and 2017, literature reported around 200 PCM cases in people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). To address research gaps on this co-infection and to study its possible temporal changes in the last decade, we performed an active co-infection case search on the HIV/AIDS and PCM cohorts from a Brazilian reference center database from 1989 to 2019. We found 20 PLWHA among 684 PCM patients (2.92%), predominantly male (70.0%) and urban workers (80.0%). The median age of patients was higher in the 2010–2019 decade (p = 0.006). The occurrence of PCM in PLWHA was lower when compared with other fungal diseases. Although 50.0% of the patients had already been diagnosed with HIV infection and presented CD4+ T cell counts greater than 200/mm3 at the time of PCM diagnosis, the suspicion of immunosuppression in the context of atypical and more severe clinical forms of PCM revealed the diagnosis of HIV infection in 35.0% of the patients. Two (10.0%) patients had an evolution compatible with immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome (IRIS) after starting antiretroviral therapy (ART).We highlight the importance of considering a PCM diagnosis in PLWHA to prevent a late-onset treatment and progression to severe manifestations and unfavorable outcomes. In addition, HIV investigation is recommended in PCM patients, especially those with atypical and more severe clinical presentations. Author summary: Paracoccidioidomycosis (PCM) is a severe systemic mycosis caused by inhalation of fungi belonging to the genus Paracoccidioides present in the soil of endemic areas in Latin America. However, it is still a neglected disease, affecting vulnerable populations such as rural workers. In the last decade, there was an increase of acute PCM cases in young people living in urban areas of the endemic area of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. This could increase the occurrence of PCM in people living HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) because they are more concentrated in these regions. When PCM and immunosuppression due to AIDS occur simultaneously, PCM can present as an opportunistic disease, with more severe, invasive, and atypical presentations. In these cases, late diagnosis and treatment can lead to higher risk of complications, sequelae, and deaths. PCM occurrence in PLWHA is scarcely reported in the literature. This study aims to describe the clinical profile of patients diagnosed with PCM and HIV co-infection from a 30-year historical cohort followed at a Brazilian reference center for infectious diseases. Our results revealed that the suspicion of this co-infection in patients with more severe clinical forms of PCM as well as routine HIV testing in PCM patients could help to prevent late-onset treatment and progression to unfavorable outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]