LI Lian-fang, LONG Shu-ying, JIN Lu, XIONG Shi-juan
Objective: To analyze the process of antifungal therapy and pharmaceutical care for one patient with AIDS complicated by Talaromyces marneffei (TM) infection, and provide a reference for the clinical treatment of such patients. Methods and Results: The patient with AIDS was admitted to the hospital due to unexplained sore throat, dry mouth, shortness of breath after activity, and general malaise. Examinations at admission showed significant abnormalities in indicators such as neutrophil percentage (NEUT%), C-reactive protein (CRP), and procalcitonin (PCT), so empirical treatment with compound sulfamethoxazole was given. The next day, the patient developed fever, and lung CT showed scattered inflammation and local consolidation in both lungs, so piperacillin-tazobactam sodium was added. One day later, fungal hyphae were detected in the patient's blood culture, and the result of G test was 242.664 pg/mL. In combination with the umbilicated rashes and acne-like lesions scattered on the face and back, TM infection was highly suspected. Then, amphotericin B colloidal dispersion (ABCD) was immediately given for induction therapy. The next day, the patient's blood culture reported positive for TM, and bone marrow smear also showed phagocytes phagocytizing TM, confirming the diagnosis of TM infection. During ABCD treatment, when the dose was "150 mg, q24h", the patient developed acute kidney injury, so the dose was reduced to "100 mg, q24h". After 2 weeks of ABCD induction therapy, the patient's body temperature returned to normal, and the levels of infection indicators such as NEUT%, CRP, and PCT significantly decreased, so it was switched to voriconazole (0.2 g, q12h) for sequential therapy. Four days later, considering that the patient's condition was relatively stable, he/she was allowed to be discharged. However, one month after discharge, the reexamination of CT scan showed that the pulmonary infection had progressed compared with that at discharge, which was considered possibly related to insufficient ABCD dose during induction therapy or individual differences in voriconazole. Conclusion: ABCD and voriconazole are recommended drugs for the treatment of patients with AIDS complicated by TM infection. Standardized treatment with sufficient course and dose is the guarantee to achieve good curative effect. Due to the large individual differences in voriconazole plasma concentration, clinical plasma concentration monitoring should be carried out as much as possible to achieve individualized adjustment of medication and ensure the treatment effect of patients.