Pharmacoeconomics: Open Access

A Case Report of Prototheca Meningitis in China

Abstract

Li YT, Zeng YF, Ning G, Gan WQ and Lin CS

Human prototheca meningitis was rarely reported in the world; here we present another case report. A 23 year old young man was admitted to department of infectious disease of the third affiliated hospital of Sun Yat-sen university, complaining of fever, headache and vomiting. Before admission, he had been diagnosed as tuberculous meningitis. After taking chemical therapy with antituberculous drugs combined with adrenocortical hormones for two months, his condition deteriorated. Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) was collected through lumbar punture for the patient, and prototheca species, which was sensitive to amphotericin B and nystatin, was discovered in CSF after culture. During hospitalization, the patient’s condition once ameliorated when the total amount of amphotericin B reached to 2400 mg three months later. However, the secondary bacterial infection in central nervous system, abdomen, and lungs might contribute to the death of the patient when amphotericin B reached to 6000 mg after 11 months. Prototheca species, though rarely been described, may also have a significant pathogenic potential in human.