Severe infections due to Candida species have become more frequent during the past two decades because of the increasing numbers of immunosuppressed patients being treated in our hospitals. Distinguishing colonization from invasive disease requires knowledge of the pathogenetic mechanisms leading to invasion. To assist the clinician in therapeutic decisions, clinical microbiologists should iden...

Flagellated protozoa that cause bronchopulmonary symptoms in humans are commonly neglected. These protozoal forms which were presumed to be "flagellated protozoa" have been previously identified in immunosuppressed patients in a number of studies, but have not been certainly classified so far. Since no human cases of bronchopulmonary flagellated protozoa were reported from Turkey, we aimed to i...

Merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) is a rare and aggressive cutaneous malignancy. The infectivity of Merkel cell polyomavirus (MCPyV), an apparent agent in MCC development, may be exacerbated with impaired immune responses. This paper reviews relevant data regarding the role of immunosuppression in the development of MCC and describes modes of immunodeficient states. Because of the inherently low inci...

Toxoplasmosis is an anthropozoonosis caused by the protozoan Toxoplasma gondii, an obligate intracellular parasite belonging to the phylum Apicomplexa. It presents a cosmopolitan geographic distribution, with high rates of infection in humans; capable of infecting nucleated cells from a wide variety of hosts. Toxoplasmosis is one of the most common opportunistic infections affecting HIV positiv...

PURPOSE OF REVIEW Due to demographic developments anesthesiologists encounter an increasing number of older and multimorbid patients in their daily routine. Consequently the proportion of immunosuppressed patients (e.g. those with cancer, diabetes mellitus, and those receiving immunosuppressive treatment and/or chemotherapy - e.g. for inflammatory bowel diseases, autoimmune diseases, and after ...

UNLABELLED Immunosuppressed patients are often susceptible to upper airway infections, especially those of the paranasal sinuses. These can sometimes jeopardize treatment success and even lead to a fatal outcome. OBJECTIVE To study the paranasal microbiology of immunosuppressed patients with clinical evidence of rhinosinusitis, and compare it with that from immunocompetent patients. MATERIA...