Pulmonary Nocardiosis with Aspergillosis in a patient with COPD: A rare co-infection

• Published in: IDCases Vol. 20; p. e00766
• Main Authors: Meena, Durga Shankar, Kumar, Deepak, Bohra, Gopal Krishana, Garg, Mahendra Kumar, Yadav, Prakrati, Sharma, Anuradha, Abhishek, Kumar S., Garg, Pawan, Pamnani, Jaya
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier Ltd 01-01-2020; Elsevier
• Subjects: Aspergillosis; COPD; Nocardia; Old Tuberculosis; Nocardia; Old Tuberculosis; Aspergillosis; COPD
• ISSN: 2214-2509; 2214-2509
• DOI: 10.1016/j.idcr.2020.e00766

•Pulmonary Nocardiosis is a rare bacterial disease which predominantly affects the immunocompromised patients.•The coexistence of Pulmonary Nocardiosis and Aspergillosis is rarely reported in the literature.•Pulmonary Nocardiosis and Aspergillosis can occur concomitantly in an immunocompetent patient with COPD or other structural lung diseases alone as a risk factor.
Pulmonary Nocardiosis and invasive Aspergillosis are well documented in immunocompromised patients. The coexistence of both infections is a diagnostic rarity, especially in patients with underlying structural lung diseases. We describe this rare association in a 46-year-old female with a history of pulmonary tuberculosis and COPD. The diagnosis of pulmonary Nocardiosis is challenging due to non-specific clinical features, inherent ability to mimic malignancy, tuberculosis and difficulty in the cultivation of the organism. The treating physicians should aware of the rare occurrence of such co-infections in order to prevent misdiagnosis and prompt treatment.