Does infection with HIV virus increase susceptibility to blastomycosis?
Blastomycosis is not one of the more common infections afflicting those who are HIV positive. However, there are documented cases of severe disease in people who were HIV positive, and then subsequently infected with the fungus. The detrimental effects of HIV infection on cellular immunity would be expected to reduce resistance to a pathogen such as B. dermatitidis. However, the infrequent exposure of people to the fungus, particularly if one does not live in a highly endemic area, places it lower on the list of opportunistic infections that are of concern in the HIV population.
