Gastrointestinal histoplasmosis in a patient with acquired immune deficiency syndrome

In otherwise healthy individuals, disease caused by the fungus Histoplasma capsulatum manifests itself as a self-limiting pulmonary infection. Dissemination of the organisms may occur in a setting of compromised cellular immunity. Gastrointestinal involvement occurs in many such cases, but rarely it is clinically obvious and the disease seldom comes to the attention of the general surgeon. However, with the increasing incidence of acquired immunodeficiency syndromes, general surgeons are managing more of these patients than in the past. In our report, we describe a patient with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome who presented with gastrointestinal histoplasmosis.