Pleural coccidioidomycosis presenting as spontaneous pneumothorax

Coccidioides is a fungus endemic to Southwestern USA and Northern Mexico which can be asymptomatic or result in a well-defined clinical syndrome of community-acquired pneumonia. On rare occasion, coccidioidomycosis may have atypical presentations as in our patient, a 25-year-old man admitted with a 2-month history of progressive dyspnoea and cough. He was found to have a large right-sided pneumothorax with exudative pleural effusion which did not resolve following thoracentesis. Decortication was performed which revealed a dense rind of inflammatory tissue covering all lobes of his right lung. Histopathology demonstrated hyphae resembling Aspergillus, but culture and serology confirmed Coccidioides immitis. Following several months of antifungal therapy, he achieved complete clinical recovery with near-complete resolution of radiographic findings.

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