Samreen Sarfaraz, Tuba Bashir, Altaf Ahmed, Naseem Salahuddin.
Actinomycosis, a clinical masquerader : case report.
Infect Dis J Jan ;21(2):443-6.

Actinomycosis is an indolent, slowly progressive, granulomatous infection caused by bacteria of the genus actinomycetes that usually spreads into adjacent soft tissues without regard for tissue planes or lymphatic drainage.1-3 Actinomycetes, first described in the 19th century, are ubiquitous in soil and as commensals of the mouth, gut, bronchial tree and genital tract.1 The species name which means “Ray Fungus” in Greek is a misnomer as actinomycetes are true bacteria. It is derived from their hyphenate like, filamentous arrangement resembling fungi.4 Actinomycosis can affect any organ and there are different clinical presentations but their incidence has remarkably declined in recent years, especially in the developed countries. However, due to poor dental hygiene, limited access to antibiotics and poor socioeconomic conditions it is still a problem in the developing countries. The oral cervicofacial form accounts for 50% of the cases and pulmonary involvement approximately 15% of cases.5 Actinomycetes are usually anaerobic but a morphologically similar group, the aerobic actinomycetes, have been recognized as significant human pathogens in both immune-competent and immune compromised hosts causing similar spectrum of disease.6 We report a case of a young girl diagnosed with thoracic and soft tissue actinomycosis where the causative organism was aerobic actinomycetes.

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