Disseminated Nocardiosis with Pulmonary Fungus and Secondary Epilepsy: A Case Report

Wu Yang, Tingting Liu Department of Critical Care Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, People’s Republic of ChinaCorrespondence: Tingting Liu, Department of Critical Care Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, No. 79, Qingchun Road, Shangcheng District, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86-13588785095, Fax +86 571-87236838, Email echo5001@163.comAbstract: Disseminated nocardiosis is a rare, life-threatening disease that usually found in immunocompromised patients, and Nocardia farcinica is one of the most common causative pathogens. The difficulty in identifying the bacterium and the delay in initiating appropriate therapy often influence the prognosis of patients with disseminated nocardiosis. Here, we present a rare case of disseminated nocardiosis in a 61-year-old female with pulmonary fungus and secondary epilepsy. She received targeted antibiotic therapy and showed a great recovery in clinical symptoms and radiological signs. Disseminated nocardiosis can be easily overlooked due to the absence of characteristic symptoms and limitations of clinical examinations. Given the variability in antibiotic susceptibility patterns, the management of disseminated nocardiosis must be individualized. Therefore, early diagnosis and targeted antibiotic treatment are critical for the prognosis of disseminated nocardiosis.Keywords: disseminated nocardiosis, Nocardia farcinica, pulmonary fungus, secondary epilepsy