Septate hyphae (Rhizoctonia sp) in sputum cytology

Abstract

Diverse types of structures (hyphae, yeasts, conidia, and phialides) corresponding to both pathogenic and non-pathogenic fungi can be observed on cytological smears under light microscopy. Hyphae are long cellular filaments belonging to the fungi. Septate hyphae have cross-walls (called septa) that divide the cytoplasm into segments. In this study, we show the presence of long branched yellowish filamentous structures (± 10 µm wide) in a conventional sputum smear stained by the Papanicolaou method (Figure 1A), corresponding to a 55-year-old male who started immunosuppressive therapy six months ago due a kidney transplant. The patient was febrile (38.3ºC) and had a productive cough for 4 days. A chest CT scan suggestedconsolidationin therightupper lobe.