Fatal invasive otitis with skull base osteomyelitis caused by Saksenaea vasiformis

Trends and Outcomes of Fungal Temporal Bone Osteomyelitis: A Scoping Review

INTRODUCTION

Temporal bone osteomyelitis is an invasive infection most often caused by bacteria and associated with high mortality. Fungal etiologies are rare and little is known of the predictors of disease severity and outcomes in fungal temporal bone osteomyelitis.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A scoping review was performed to determine what is known from the literature on how clinical, diagnostic, and treatment characteristics relate to patient outcomes in fungal temporal bone osteomyelitis. Using PRISMA guidelines, three databases were searched to identify all published cases of fungal temporal bone osteomyelitis. Data were extracted from each study, including clinical, diagnostic, and treatment characteristics, and outcomes.

RESULTS

Sixty-eight studies comprising 74 individual cases of fungal temporal bone osteomyelitis were included. All studies were case reports. There were high rates of diabetes, facial nerve palsy, infectious complications, and need for surgical intervention, as well as a significant delay in the evaluation and diagnosis of fungal temporal bone osteomyelitis. Disease recovery was greater in patients presenting with otorrhea, comorbid diabetes, and in those without facial nerve palsy.

DISCUSSION

Many of the defining characteristics of fungal temporal bone osteomyelitis remain unknown, and future reports should focus on determining factors that improve timely diagnosis and treatment of fungal TBO in addition to identifying prognostic indicators for outcomes and survival.

Cutaneous Invasive Fungal Infections with Saksenaea Species in Immunocompetent Patients in Europe: A Systematic Review and Case Report

Invasive fungal infections from Saksenaea, a fungus belonging to the Mucorales, have been rarely reported in central European climate zones. This study aims to raise awareness of invasive cutaneous infections with Saksenaea species. The first case of a cutaneous infection was diagnosed in Switzerland in an immunocompetent 79-year-old patient. A minor skin trauma of her left lower leg led to a fulminant infection causing necrosis and extensive loss of tissue. The combination of surgical debridement and administration of antifungal agents averted a prolonged course with a possible worse outcome. A pedicled hemisoleus muscle flap was used to reconstruct the defect and treatment was continued for 63 days.

Unusual case of otomycosis caused by Saksenaea vasiformis

Saksenaea vasiformis is a species of the order Mucorales rarely reported as a cause of human mucormycosis. We report an unusual case of S. vasiformis otitis occurring in a diabetic woman after penetration of an insect in the right ear. Direct microscopic examination of the clinical sample showed hyaline and non septate hyphae belonging to the order Mucorales. Fungal identification was performed by sequencing the ITS region of the rDNA. To our knowledge, this is the first report of S. vasiformis infection in Tunisia.

Saksenaea infection masquerading as a brain tumor in an immunocompetent child

Saksenaea species are a rare cause of mucormycosis, the majority associated with cutaneous and subcutaneous infections resulting from trauma in both immunocompromised and immunocompetent individuals. Unlike other causative agents of mucormycosis, cerebral infections are exceptionally rare. We describe the first case of isolated cerebral infection by Saksenaea in a 4-year-old previously healthy male child who presented with headaches. He had no past medical history other than an episode of febrile seizures. In addition to raising the awareness of an unusual presentation of infection by Saksenaea, this case highlights the importance of pathologic examination for the prompt diagnosis of mucormycosis as well as the specific fungal identification for treatment as Saksenaea spp. may be more susceptible to posaconazole and less susceptible to amphotericin B compared to more common causes of mucormycosis.