Lung fungus dangerous disease

This is an automatically translated article.

The article was professionally consulted with Master, Doctor Dang Huy Toan - Pediatrician - Neonatologist - Department of Pediatrics - Neonatology - Vinmec Nha Trang International General Hospital.
According to research, the prevalence of lung fungus is very low, only about 0.02%. However, because the disease has nonspecific signs and is often mistaken for a bacterial infection, early diagnosis is difficult. Lung fungal disease is very dangerous, if not detected and treated early, can cause many complications with a high mortality rate.

1. What is pulmonary fungal disease?

Lung thrush is a fungal infection of the lungs. May be harmful to the body and has the potential to spread to other organs in the body.
Pulmonary mycosis is usually caused by fungi that are the result of a naturally occurring or acquired immunodeficiency condition such as HIV infection, use of immunosuppressive drugs such as chemotherapy for cancer, use of Long-term corticosteroids, anti-rejection drugs, long-term use of antibiotics... or sometimes fungal growth on the background of a pre-existing lung injury such as cavernous tuberculosis, bronchiectasis...

2. Causes of lung fungus

The cause of lung fungus is a fungus, there are 3 types of fungi that cause disease in the lungs most commonly, including:
Candida: A yeast that causes opportunistic diseases, which can cause disease in many different organs such as the respiratory tract. , gastrointestinal tract, genitals. Aspergillus: This is the most common fungus that causes disease. Among them, the most common species are A. fumigatus, A. flavus, A. niger... Cryptococcus fungus: Causing disease in the lungs by inhaling fungal spores, Cryptococcus has affinity for nerve cells. When the disease is not treated early, it is dangerous for the body. Predisposing factors for the disease: In healthy people, the risk of lung fungal infection is very low, lung fungus is often considered an opportunistic disease in high-risk subjects such as:
Immunocompromised people or users immunosuppressive drugs in the treatment of disease. Elderly. People with chronic diseases.

3. Signs to recognize lung fungal disease

Signs of lung fungal infection are relatively similar to some lung diseases caused by other microorganisms, so sometimes detecting the disease is difficult. Some typical signs of pulmonary fungal disease include:
Prolonged fever with no known cause. Weight loss, prolonged fatigue. Dry cough or cough with phlegm, coughing up blood is the most common sign that is caused by Aspergillus. There may be recurrent hemoptysis or severe hemoptysis. Chest pain, retrosternal pain, dyspnea, and stridor may be present. Hoarseness may occur. In the case of candidiasis in the oropharyngeal mucosa, a white layer may be seen covering the entire surface of the tongue, the patient may have difficulty swallowing and may have ulcers accompanied by white pseudomembranous membranes on the oral mucosa. With the cause of Cryptococcus fungus having a high affinity for nerve cells, patients may develop central nervous system disorders such as irritability, headache, confusion, convulsions, cranial nerve palsies. brain, motor paralysis or even coma. There are signs of pneumonia, but prolonged antibiotic treatment does not improve the disease, even worsening. The signs when examining the lungs hear rales, can see hissing rales, snoring rales. But the clinical signs are often few, the diagnosis is not clear. To confirm the diagnosis of the disease when there are suspicious signs, it is necessary to conduct endoscopic staining to find the causative fungus and to culture the tissue samples.

4. Is lung fungal disease dangerous?

Although the incidence is very small and rare in healthy people. However, when infected with fungal lung disease is very dangerous if not detected and treated early, it can lead to a high risk of death. The reasons that make pneumothorax become dangerous include:
In the case of pulmonary mycosis if left untreated for a long time, there is a risk that fungal spores will spread and cause other organ diseases including meningitis and meningococcal disease. , skin lesions, myositis, endophthalmitis... even the risk of fungal infection. Patients can cause dangerous complications on organs, even death. According to research, the risk of death in people with pulmonary fungal disease is up to 50-70%, the rate is very high and the patient often dies due to physical exhaustion, prolonged massive coughing up blood...

The signs of pulmonary fungal disease are not specific and are often confused with other lung diseases, so the diagnosis is difficult, often diagnosed late, so the risk of complications is higher. Lung fungal disease often occurs on sites with weakened immune systems, when there is an attack of fungi, the body is not able to destroy the pathogen, so the ability to fight the disease is less. In addition, the treatment of fungus is often persistent, if the body's resistance is poor, it will usually take longer. Lung fungus is a very dangerous disease that can be fatal if not detected and treated early. When there are suspicious signs, it is necessary to go to the hospital for examination and timely intervention.
Vinmec International General Hospital is a high-quality medical care address with a team of doctors with many years of experience and intensive training in domestic and foreign environments. To diagnose lung fungus, the patient will be examined with a specialist doctor who combines history, clinical symptoms, imaging and laboratory tests to make an accurate assessment, thereby advising the patient. current health status and appropriate treatment direction. Therefore, customers can completely trust the medical quality at Vinmec hospital.

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