http://www.wisconsinmedicalsociety.org/publications_and_media/press_releases#pr_121Wisconsin Medical Journal: Fungus among us: Researchers find rare but dangerous rural fungal disease in Milwaukee
release date: Tuesday, November 10, 2009
contact: Jessica Steinhoff - 608.442.3747 -
jessica.steinhoff@wismed.org Madison, Wis.—Blastomycosis, a potentially fatal fungal infection, has typically been associated with rural northern Wisconsin. However, according to new research published in the Wisconsin Medical Journal (Vol. 108, No. 8, it’s also a disease that affects city dwellers.
A team of researchers from the Center for Urban Population Health, the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health and several other institutions studied 68 cases of the illness from urban southeastern Wisconsin from 2002 to 2007 and found that residents of this region may acquire blastomycosis there, sometimes without a specific outdoor exposure source.
A substantial percent of the patients studied reported that they had not traveled outside their community around the time they became ill, suggesting that they may have been infected close to home. The researchers surveyed these patients about their exposure to potential sources of the fungus near their homes, including open bodies of water and local parks, finding that the 45 cases identified in the City of Milwaukee were concentrated on the north side of town, closer than average to an inland waterway.
Previous studies have suggested that inland waterways may be associated with the disease. While the researchers were not able to determine how the fungus made its way from waterways to Milwaukee-area residents, a majority of the patients they queried recalled waterway exposure, which may have led to direct contact with the Blastomyces dermatitidis fungus.
While more research on the process by which people come into contact with Blastomyces is needed, the researchers say the study’s most important take-away message is for urban health care professionals: Blastomycosis should be considered as a diagnosis when a patient is presenting with its symptoms, even if the patient does not report a history of traveling to northern Wisconsin.
The Wisconsin Medical Journal is the official publication of the Wisconsin Medical Society. With nearly 12,500 members dedicated to the best interests of their patients, the Society is the largest association of medical doctors in the state and has been a trusted source for health policy leadership since 1841. For details, visit
www.wisconsinmedicalsociety.org.
