Korean J Med Mycol.
2016 Dec;21(4):122-128. 10.17966/KJMM.2016.21.4.122.
A Case of Multiple Primary Cutaneous Mucormycosis Caused by Cunninghamella Species
- Affiliations
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- 1Department of Dermatology, Busan Paik Hospital, College of Medicine, Inje University, Busan, Korea. derma09@hanmail.net
- 2Department of Laboratory Medicine, College of Medicine, Inje University, Busan, Korea.
- 3Paik Institue for Clinical Research, College of Medicine, Inje University, Busan, Korea.
- KMID: 2368999
- DOI: http://doi.org/10.17966/KJMM.2016.21.4.122
Abstract
- A 71-year-old female presented with erythematous ulcerative patches on her right cheek, chest and right upper arm. She admitted to neurosurgery intensive care unit (NSICU) with mental change related to intracerebral hemorrhage. She had no underlying disease. Histopathologic examination of her right upper arm showed multiple non-septated broad hyphae with right-angled branching in dermis. She was diagnosed as primary cutaneous mucormycosis. The fungal culture demonstrated Cunninghamella species. We postulated that mucormycosis occurred after inoculation of fungi following fall down trauma. Mucormycosis, which commonly affects immunocompromised patient, is a rare fungal infection caused by the order Mucorales. Cutaneous mucormycosis is caused either by direct inoculation of fungal spores or by hematologic spread from another primary source. Clinical manifestations are various from indolent ulceration to rapidly progressive necrosis. Mucormycosis can be diagnosed based on the histologic findings and the fungal culture. Mucormycosis by Cunninghamella species have been increasingly reported, but most of them are pulmonary mucormycosis in immunocompromised patients. Herein, we report a rare case of multiple primary cutaneous mucormycosis caused by Cunninghamella species in a patient without underlying disease.
