Aspergillus spondylodiskitis in a patient with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Abstract

Invasive aspergillosis is a well-known complication in immunocompromised patients. There are only a few reports of invasive aspergillosis in non-immunocompromised patients. We describe a 72-year-old female patient with clinical signs of spondylodiskitis occurring 4 months after what had appeared to be successful treatment of pulmonary aspergillosis. The patient used inhalation corticosteroids on a daily basis because of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Spondylodiskitis of the intervertebral disc Th11 and Th12 with involvement of both adjacent vertebral bodies was confirmed by magnetic resonance imaging. Histopathological examination revealed the presence of septate hyphae, indicative of Aspergillus species. Subsequently, evidence of Aspergillus spondylodiskitis was obtained by amplification of Aspergillus-DNA with a specific polymerase chain reaction method. Aspergillus spondylodiskitis after pulmonary aspergillosis is only very rarely encountered. Patients with COPD, managed with short-term courses of systemic corticosteroids or with high-dose corticosteroid inhalation therapies, are considered non-immunocompromised but might be at risk of developing invasive aspergillosis.