News & Views
AIDS patients with Cryptococcus are being misdiagnosed
Sep 02 2011
A recent study from Duke University Medical Center has found that most AIDS patients diagnosed with a fungal infection called Cryptococcus are assumed to have the neoformans strain of the infection, but a sibling species called gattii could be more common than originally though.
This discovery could have important implications to the treatment strategy of the infection.
Cryptococcal strains are responsible for over 620,000 deaths annually and for one-third of all AIDS deaths so this distinction between species may be of public health importance.
Scientists at Duke University Medical Center found that Cryptococcus gattii was the cause of the Cryptococcus infection in 12 per cent of AIDS patients, much higher than the one per cent originally thought.
"Although the outcome of infection in comparison between the two species remains uncertain, this study shows that we need to carefully control for potential differences and study them further," explained Dr John R Perfect, professor of medicine at Duke University Medical Center.
Digital Edition
International Labmate Buyers' Guide 2024/25
June 2024
Buyers' Guide featuring: Product Listings & Manufacturers Directory Chromatography Articles - Enhancing HPLC Field Service with fast-response, non-invasive flowmeters - Digital transformatio...
View all digital editions
Events
Jul 07 2024 Dublin, Ireland
Jul 20 2024 Denver, CO, USA
Jul 21 2024 Cape Town, South Africa
Jul 28 2024 San Diego, CA USA
Jul 30 2024 Jakarta, Indonesia