Organism & Syndrome Index

The Traveling Edema

Gnathostoma spinigerum

Migratory edema after raw seafood exposure.

The Climbing Lesion

Nocardia brasiliensis

Not your routine skin and soft tissue infection.

Fever, Urinary Symptoms, and a Heart Murmur

Aerococcus urinae

Beyond the obvious: Gram-positive clusters.

Amazon Adventure

Lacazia loboi

A returning traveler lesion.

Fever and Cytopenias After Heart Transplant

Parvovirus B19

When the Marrow Goes Quiet

Fulminant Shock

Streptococcus suis

Shock in the Slaughterhouse

A Nose Lesion that Wouldn’t Heal

Klebsiella rhinoscleromatis

A chronic nasal lesion with a broad differential diagnosis.

Hundreds of Lesions

Tunga penetrans

Neglect, poverty, and a devastating skin disease.

Bloody Diarrhea Without a Clear Cause

Brachyspira aalborgi

An unexpected culprit.

Headache, Ataxia, and Sixth Nerve Palsy in Connecticut

Powassan virus

Brief attachment

When molluscum is not molluscum

Talaromyces marneffei

Another skin lesion...

Chronic Hemoptysis in a Traveler from Rural Colombia

Paragonimus westermani

When lung flukes mimic TB.

A Cryptic Case

Cryptococcus gattii

When CNS cryptococcosis reveals an acquired immune defect.

Slowly Progressive Lumbar Mass

Actinomyces israelii

When a soft-tissue mass is an indolent infection.

Symmetric Groin Plaques in a Man With Diabetes

Corynebacterium minutissimum

An intertriginous rash with a key bedside clue.

Verrucous Skin Lesions and a Right Upper Lobe Cavitary Opacity

Blastomyces dermatitidis

A verrucous arm lesion, diagnostic GMS stain, and right upper lobe pulmonary disease.

Fever, Hemolysis, and Bleeding Papules After Andes Travel

Bartonella bacilliformis

A classic biphasic Bartonella bacilliformis syndrome.

At the Tip of the Nose

Varicella-zoster virus

A unilateral facial eruption with ocular risk and a misleading early course.

The Case of the Returning Fever

Borrelia recurrentis

Recurrent fever, jaundice, and a diagnosis hiding in the clothing seams.

A Cheesy Clue

Mycobacterium bovis

Infectious differential for chronic diarrhea and edema.

After the Steroid Burst

Strongyloides stercoralis

ICU shock, pulmonary infiltrates, and diarrhea after immunosuppression.

Persistent Fever, Splinter Hemorrhages, and an Aortic Valve Abscess

Brucella melitensis

A culture-negative endocarditis clue hiding in the exposure history.

Transient Leg Weakness in a Man from Rural Colombia

Taenia solium

Transient deficits, basal cistern lesions, and a hidden tropical diagnosis.

Jaw Stiffness in a Visitor from Rural Haiti

Clostridium tetani

An early neurologic warning sign with a dangerous trajectory.

Severe Hypertension and Renal Failure in Western Mozambique

Schistosoma haematobium

A tropical cause of bilateral obstructive uropathy and renal failure.

Acute Dysentery in a Returning Aid Worker

Shigella flexneri

A high-yield cause of acute bloody diarrhea.

New HIV Diagnosis in a Patient on Hemodialysis

HIV-1

Selecting initial ART in end-stage kidney disease on dialysis.

Postpartum Fever, Diplopia, and Hemiparesis

Listeria monocytogenes

A stroke-mimic presentation of postpartum brainstem infection.

Fever During Alemtuzumab Therapy

Cytomegalovirus

An opportunistic infection clue during lymphocyte-depleting therapy.

Persistent Diarrhea and Flatulence After Travel to India

Giardia lamblia

Greasy stools, bloating after dairy, and a classic travel-related cause of persistent diarrhea.

Progressive Spastic Paraparesis in a Woman from Guyana

HTLV-1

A tropical differential for myelopathy.

Recurrent Pneumococcemia

Streptococcus pneumoniae

Recurrent invasive pneumococcal disease with a subtle hematologic clue.

Follicles Beneath the Upper Lid

Chlamydia trachomatis

Chronic conjunctivitis in a child from rural Ethiopia.

When the Fever Breaks

Dengue virus

A tropical febrile illness takes a dangerous turn.

Desert Screening Dilemma

Coccidioides immitis

An HIV follow-up case.

Soft Edges and a Swollen Groin

Haemophilus ducreyi

A painful genital ulcer that resists easy categorization.

A Shot in the Dark

HIV-1

Choosing the right ART when prevention was an injection.

The Rainy Season Abscess

Burkholderia pseudomallei

A diabetic farmer, a draining wound, and a dangerous saprophyte.

The Breast Mass That Wasn’t Cancer

Corynebacterium kroppenstedtii

A suspicious breast mass with a hidden microbiologic cause.

The Fever That Would Not Wait

Mycobacterium tuberculosis, HIV-1

TB meningitis in a newly diagnosed HIV patient — treatment timing and ART selection.

The Plaque Before the Storm

Balamuthia mandrillaris

A facial skin lesion that foreshadowed a fatal encephalitis.

Lights Out on Postoperative Day 21

Seizure and cortical blindness in a kidney transplant recipient on tacrolimus.

Paresthesias in Paradise

Angiostrongylus cantonensis

Severe headache, migratory paresthesias, and a CSF full of eosinophils after a Hawaiian farm dinner.

After the Extraction

Streptococcus mitis, Viridans streptococci

Acute knee pain in a patient with a prosthetic joint after a dental procedure.

The Cellulitis That Kept Coming Back

Brugia malayi, Wolbachia

Recurrent leg swelling, a healing inguinal scar, and a blood draw that had to wait until midnight.

Two Continents, One Smear

Babesia microti

Fever, hemolysis, and intraerythrocytic ring forms in an asplenic traveler.

The Watercress Fever

Fasciola hepatica

A Bolivian immigrant with fever, eosinophilia, and hepatic migratory lesions.

Resistance by Default

Enterococcus gallinarum

Not all vancomycin resistance is created equal.

Fever From the Forest

Orientia tsutsugamushi

Fever, rash, and a painless black-crusted ulcer after trekking in rural Nepal.

The Viscous Clue

Klebsiella pneumoniae

A diabetic man with endophthalmitis whose blood cultures revealed more than an eye infection.