CHRİSTİNA BALLÁZS, PAYAM AKHYARİ, ARASH MEHDİANİ, HİROYUKİ KAMİYA, PETRA REİNECKE, JÖRG FELSBERG, DİYAR SAEED, ARTUR LİCHTENBERG, UDO BOEKEN
Experimental and Clinical Transplantation - 2016;14(3):349-352
Invasive fungal infection after solid-organ transplantation is known as a severe complication and carries with it a high risk of infection-related mortality. Among patients after heart transplant Aspergillus species most often cause atypical pneumonia. The incidence of invasive aspergillosis after heart transplant has been reported from 3% to 14%. It is the opportunistic pathogen with the highest mortality, ranging from 50% to 80%. Prompt antifungal therapy is crucial, but rapid diagnostic procedures with sufficient sensitivity and specificity are lacking at the moment. We present a rare case of a patient with massive metastasizing invasive aspergillosis within 1 month after heart transplant, undetected before death.
