Table 6.
Characteristics of 81 cases of histoplasmosis among immunocompetent subjects diagnosed in Europe and Israel.
| Characteristics | No. (%) or Median (Range) |
|---|---|
| Age, years | 43 (17–78) |
| Males | 56 (69.1) |
| Latency | |
| Travellers | 14 days (2–120) |
| Expatriates, migrants | 6.5 years (3–46) |
| Geographical areas of suspected Histoplasma exposure | |
| Central/South America ^ | 50 (61.7) |
| Sub-Saharan Africa § | 20 (24.7) |
| Sub-Saharan Africa and Central/South America # | 3 (3.7) |
| United States * | 2 (2.5) |
| India | 1 (1.2) |
| Europe (2 Italy, 2 Spain) | 4 (4.9) |
| Israel | 1 (1.2) |
| Country of diagnosis | |
| Spain | 19 (23.5) |
| France | 12 (14.8) |
| Germany | 8 (9.9) |
| Italy, Poland | 6 (7.4) |
| Austria, Slovenia | 5 (6.2) |
| Netherlands | 4 (4.9) |
| Israel, United Kingdom, Switzerland | 3 (3.7) |
| Greece, Ireland, Portugal | 2 (2.5) |
| Sweden | 1 (1.2) |
| Patient categories | |
| Travellers | 40 (49.4) |
| Expatriates | 5 (12.3) |
| Workers | 26 (32.1) |
| Migrants | 2 (2.5) |
| Military service people | 2 (2.5) |
| Autochthonous | 5 (7.4) |
| Method of diagnosis | |
| Serology | 36 (44.4) |
| Histology | 10 (12.3) |
| Histology + PCR | 9 (11.1) |
| Histoplasma antigen | 4 (4.9) |
| Histology + culture + PCR | 3 (3.7) |
| Culture | 3 (3.7) |
| Culture + PCR | 3 (3.7) |
| Histology + culture | 2 (2.5) |
| PCR | 2 (2.5) |
| Serology + PCR | 2 (2.5) |
| Clinical | 6 (7.4) |
| Autopsy | 1 (1.2) |
| Histoplasma species | |
| H. capsulatum | 29 (78.4) |
| H. duboisii | 6 (16.2) |
| Histoplasma spp. | 2 (2.5) |
| Treatment | |
| Itraconazole | 45 (60.8) |
| L-AMB | 6 (8.1) |
| Ketoconazole, itraconazole | 2 (2.7) |
| d-AMB, itraconazole | 2 (2.7) |
| No treatment | 19 (25.7) |
| Not reported | 7 |
| Outcome | |
| Survived | 68 (94.4) |
| Died | 4 (5.6) |
| Not reported | 9 |
^ 12 Ecuador; 6 Venezuela; 4 Nicaragua, Brazil, Mexico; 3 Costa Rica, Cuba, Trinidad; 2 Jamaica; 1 Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Peru, Panama, El Salvador; 6 multiple countries. # 1 Brazil, Bolivia, Angola, Ethiopia. § 12 Uganda; 2 Democratic Republic of Congo, Guinea Bissau; 1 Angola, Congo, Ghana, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon. * 1 also Mexico. PCR—polymerase chain reaction; L-AMB—liposomal amphotericin B; d-AMB—deoxycholate amphotericin B.