Two-year experience with cryptococcus neoformans in Siriaj Hospital.

ABSTRACT

Isolates of C. neoformans were collected from clinical specimens of 15 patients (9 males, 6 females; average age 34 years) admitted to Siriraj Hospital during the period January 1990-December 1991. All suffered from crytococcal meningitis. Five patients were diagnosed as having AIDS and three, leukemia and lymphoma. Duration of hospital stay varied from one to 190 days (average 40 days). Initial latex agglutination test using cerebrospinal fluid showed titres of 132-164, except in two patients with titres of 1128 and 11024, both of whom died. One patient’s latex agglutination test was negative three times, but the organism was found in the cerebrospinal fluid. The slide latex agglutination test titre decreased to 14(1) in an average of 64 days. C. neoformans was isolated from the blood of two AIDS patients, both of whom died. Capsular antigen study by glycine cycloheximide medium revealed that all 15 isolates of C. neoformans were serotypes A or D. This study, along with several others, revealed that cryptococcosis is a growing problem which should be watched carefully in AIDS patients.