About torulosis

What is torulosis?

Torulosis is an airborne disease. It is more famously referred to as cryptococcosis.

  • When you inhale infected dust, torulosis slowly spreads throughout your lungs, presenting as pneumonia. It could potentially be fatal. Sometimes, it can also make its way to the brain, where it appears as meningitis. Other parts of the body that could be at risk include the skin which shows up as several fluid-filled nodules with dead tissue. 
  • The fungi at the root of the cause of this issue can be spotted in soil, pigeon droppings, decaying wood, or certain species of trees. 
  • Once you inhale this torulosis ridden fungus, you’ll come under one of the three following outcomes:
  1. They get cleared by immune cells
  2. They lie dormant
  3. They cause infection and spread
  • Generally, most people have good enough immunity to fight off this fungus. Although, immunity-compromised individuals are at risk. People with HIV/AIDS and those on immunosuppressant drugs are the ones who need to look out for torulosis.

There are three subsections within cryptococcosis/torulosis. They are:

  • Primary Cutaneous Cryptococcosis: Males are more likely to develop this condition than their female counterparts. This might be owed to the meddling of a certain growth hormone.
  • Pulmonary Cryptococcosis: This affects healthy adults at a much lower frequency. It mainly targets people with a threatened immunity.
  • Cryptococcal Meningitis: This form of cryptococcosis/torulosis only affects the brain.

What are the symptoms for torulosis?

Neck pain symptom was found in the torulosis condition

The symptoms of torulosis differ from organ to organ. 

When lungs are affected:

  • Cough: When the disease spreads to the lungs, the symptoms may be minimal or not apparent at all. Respiratory symptoms start with cough, and can then escalate to Shortness of breath and chest pain.
  • Fever: Your body may start boiling in response to a weak lung system.

When the brain is affected:

  • Headache & nausea: A person affected with torulosis will develop a striking pain in the head and a continuous feeling of nausea. This is because, when the disease spreads, it tends to seek out the central nervous system.
  • Neck pain: Meningitis is associated with stiffness of the neck, as this area is connected to the brain’s nervous system. 
  • Blurred vision: Blurred or impaired vision can be potentially life-threatening. Immediate care and attention are necessary to prevent further complications.

When other regions are affected:

  • Appetite loss:Torulosis patients may experience severe Appetite loss which can result in a dramatic weight loss. 
  • Abdominal pain: Abdominal pain can manifest in abdominal bloating and swelling, which can also result in a feeling of numbness in that region.

What are the causes for torulosis?

Torulosis, also known as Cryptococcosis, is a disease caused by fungi that infect humans and animals. The fungus is commonly inhaled, resulting in a lung infection that can proceed to the brain. 

Causes: 

  • Torulosis is caused by Cryptococcus neoformans, a type of fungus. 
  • Contact with pigeon fecal matter or unwashed raw fruit can transfer the virus to humans.
  • Direct touch with an infected person can potentially transfer infection. Individuals with illnesses that cause decreased immunity (such as HIV infection) are more vulnerable to these infections.
  • When the slowly reproducing fungi form fungal masses (called cryptococcomas) that compress or distort the implicated organ (typically the lung or brain) and its vasculature, organ damage occurs. 
  • Some of these fungi can break free from a lung fungal mass or infected pulmonary nodule and be transferred or swept into the circulation, where they can lodge and proliferate in other organs, including the brain. 
  • Because these organisms provoke little or no inflammatory response, symptoms in humans do not appear until late in the illness phase, when the fungal mass begins to change the organ in which it is found. 
  • This is why some people's initial symptoms of Torulosis are alterations in their brains. 

What are the treatments for torulosis?

Torulosis, also known as Cryptococcosis, is a disease caused by fungi that infect humans and animals. When the fungus is inhaled, it results in a lung infection that can proceed to the brain.

Treatment:

  1. A fungal tumor in a few patients may require surgery to shrink or remove it.
  1. The goal of treatment is to remove the fungi; however, this may not be achievable for certain individuals, and these patients may require lifetime medicine to prevent fungal growth or reactivation. 
  1. Patients who are not hypersensitive are typically treated with amphotericin B alone or in combination with flucytosine for six to ten weeks (about two weeks).
  1. Following these treatments, fluconazole is given for at least another ten weeks. This medication is used to treat serious brain and lung infections. In patients suffering from brain infections, antifungal therapy is usually continued until the spinal fluid is negative, and lung lesions should shrink in size in response to treatment.
  1. Mild lung infections may recover without treatment, but they must be closely followed to ensure that the illness does not reactivate or progress slowly. 
  1. Immunocompromised individuals are treated similarly to healthy patients, but only with intravenously delivered (IV) medications at first, and suppressive therapy, generally fluconazole, can last anywhere from one to two years to a lifetime.
  2. Regular medical examinations to see if torulosis has reactivated or if lesions have grown in size.

What are the risk factors for torulosis?

Torulosis, can be in various forms, Torula meningitis, pneumonic or granulomatous torulosis of the lung, or a combination of these. These are the following risk factors – 

  • The membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord due to meningitis, are caused by torulosis.
  • AIDS and liver cirrhosis are independent risk factors for developing torulosis.
  • People with immune deficiencies or low immunity are at high risk for contracting torulosis.
  • Torulosis involvement in the skin affects mucous membranes, bones, and joints.
  • Torulosis is considered highly fatal because, in most cases reported, the patient has been diagnosed in the last stage of the disease.
  • Torulosis mostly affects people with an organ transplant or on immunosuppressant medications.
  • The cases of torulosis also seem to occur in people with HIV/AIDS.
  • Evidence suggests that the disease is not as rare as it was once thought; hence the risk of contracting it is high.
  • Torulosis may simulate other disorders of the central nervous system, particularly tuberculous meningitis and tumor of the brain.
  • Antibiotics like Amphotericin B, Flucytosine, and Fluconazole, may have serious side effects, and hence need to be monitored carefully.
  • Skin rash, bruises, numbness, and/or tingling sensation are some other risk factors associated with torulosis.

Is there a cure/medications for torulosis?

Torulosis, also called cryptococcosis, is considered highly fatal caused by inhaling yeast-like fungi. 

  • The treatment has been eminently unsuccessful in most cases.
  • The death among the patients occurs within months after the appearance of symptoms.
  • Evidence suggests that the disease is quite common, and can be caused by breathing the dried yeast found around soil, decaying wood, and pigeon droppings.
  • Diagnostic serological procedures, including complement fixation tests, provide early evidence of the disease caused by a fungal infection.
  • Torulosis is typically cured with antifungal drugs amphotericin B and flucytosine.
  • There is no satisfactory form of treatment; the known antibiotics are most of the time ineffective.
  • Reports indicate a favorable response to sulfadiazine as a possible medication in some cases.
  • Resectional therapy is somewhat successful for localized pulmonary torulosis.
  • Patients are also given medications for torulosis like amphotericin B by intravenous and intrathecal routes.
  • Torulosis may simulate other disorders of the central nervous system, particularly tuberculous meningitis and tumor of the brain.
  • Usually, antibiotics like Amphotericin B and Flucytosine are used as medication.
  • The medications may have serious side effects, so they need to be monitored carefully.
  • Fluconazole is an antifungal medication given in acute cases; it is administered by injecting it into a vein.

List of Condition

Torulosis is a fatal disease caused by the yeast-like fungus called Torulopsis histolytica. 

List of Symptoms

Symptoms of Torulosis may include chest pain, dry cough, headache, nausea, confusion, fatigue, excessive sweating, and swollen glands.

List of Drugs

Amphotericin B, Flucytosine, and Fluconazole are used as prescribed drugs.

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