A case of disseminated cryptococcosis with necrotizing fasciitis in a non-HIV patient.

CASE: Disseminated cryptococcosis is a well-recognized condition among HIV patients, but it also occurs in non-HIV patients. Necrotizing fasciitis caused by cryptococcus is rare. An 81-year-old man who had received steroid therapy presented with erythema and pain in his right thigh. After the rapid progression of symptoms and a failure to respond to antibiotic therapy, a clinical diagnosis of necrotizing fasciitis was made. We performed debridement, and yeasts were detected using a Gram stain of the fascia. We treated the patient with liposomal amphotericin B. On day 3, he developed meningitis. Cryptococcus neoformans was detected in the blood, fascia, and cerebrospinal fluid. Flucytosine was added to liposomal amphotericin B.

OUTCOME: Despite the antifungal treatment, new regions of dissemination to the skin developed, and the patient died of multiple organ failure.

CONCLUSION: A diagnosis of disseminated cryptococcosis should be considered in a differential diagnosis of necrotizing fasciitis among immunocompromised patients, regardless of their HIV status.