From Histoplasmosis to Cryptococcosis: A diagnostic journey of pediatric scalp abscess

Abstract

A 3-year-old boy being treated for disseminated tuberculosis with antitubercular drugs and steroids developed scalp swelling. Needle aspirate revealed yeasts inside macrophages, initially diagnosed as Histoplasmosis but later confirmed as Cryptococcosis. Treatment with liposomal amphotericin B and fluconazole resulted in lesion resolution. Here we report a rare instance of disseminated cryptococcosis with skin involvement, possibly the first documented pediatric case of cryptococcosis from Odisha.