A formerly tropical fungus is behind at least 15 deaths in the U.S. Pacific Northwest over six years, health officials say. The fungus, called Cryptococcus gattii, is considered rare. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention described cases of infection in the U.S. since 2004 in its weekly report on death and disease, published online on Friday.
Patients’ symptoms included:
* Cough, 56 per cent.
* Shortness of breath, 51 per cent.
* Headache, 53 per cent.
* Fever, 42 per cent.
* Weight loss, 40 per cent.
* Neck stiffness, 21 per cent.
Read more: http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2010/07/23/cryptococcus-fungus-infections-cdc.html#ixzz0unnSCXKD
