Darling's Disease: A Review
Abstract Histoplasmosis is primarily a pulmonary disease caused by the fungus Histoplasma capsulatumwith varying symptoms.The fungus is found in high concentrations in soil contaminated with bird or bat excreta while transmission occurs via inhalation of H. capsulatum spores from the soil. The fungal infection either is cleared or theorganism continues to reproduce intracellularly and disseminates throughout the body via lymphatic and hematogenous circulation. Darling, a world-leading pathologist discovered Histoplasmosisto be a fungal infection in 1905 therefore it is also called as Darling’s disease. Transmission occurs in areas like caves containing bat or bird droppings, chicken coops, birdhouses, bird roosts, or soil contaminated with such droppings. H. capsulatumcan survive in soil for years and if the soil becomes airborne, it may cause Histoplasmosis. In patients that are immuno suppressed, complications are mouth ulcers, fevers, headaches, confusion, seizures...