{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,24]],"date-time":"2026-02-24T05:54:53Z","timestamp":1771912493557,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":10,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"21","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2021,10,29]],"date-time":"2021-10-29T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1635465600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["IJERPH"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Objective: to describe a single-center experience of Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia (PJP) in non-HIV patients recovering from COVID-19. Methods: We report the cases of five non-HIV patients with COVID-19 who also developed PJP at a University Hospital. Results: With the exception of one subject, who experienced an atypical and prolonged course of COVID-19, all the patients developed PJP after the clinical resolution of COVID-19 pneumonia. All but one patient had no pre-existing immunosuppressive conditions or other risk factors for PJP development at COVID-19 diagnosis. Nonetheless, following the course of COVID-19 infection, all the patients fulfilled at least one host factor for PJP; indeed, all the patients had received at least 2 weeks of high-dose steroids and three out of five had a CD4+ cell count &lt;200\/mm3. Conclusions: The use of corticosteroids for COVID-19 respiratory impairment seems to be the most common risk factor for PJP, together with viral-induced and iatrogenic lymphopenia. The worsening in respiratory function and the characteristic radiological picture during or after COVID-19 pneumonia should raise the suspicion of PJP, even in immunocompetent patients. PJP primary chemoprophylaxis can be considered in selected high-risk COVID-19 patients, but further studies are needed.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/ijerph182111399","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2021,11,1]],"date-time":"2021-11-01T22:21:34Z","timestamp":1635805294000},"page":"11399","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":31,"title":["Pneumocystis jirovecii Pneumonia in Non-HIV Patients Recovering from COVID-19: A Single-Center Experience"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"18","author":[{"given":"Ivan","family":"Gentile","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, Section of Infectious Disease, University of Naples \u201cFederico II\u201d, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Giulio","family":"Viceconte","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, Section of Infectious Disease, University of Naples \u201cFederico II\u201d, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Amedeo","family":"Lanzardo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, Section of Infectious Disease, University of Naples \u201cFederico II\u201d, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Irene","family":"Zotta","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, Section of Infectious Disease, University of Naples \u201cFederico II\u201d, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7660-7939","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Emanuela","family":"Zappulo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, Section of Infectious Disease, University of Naples \u201cFederico II\u201d, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-8685-5434","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Biagio","family":"Pinchera","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, Section of Infectious Disease, University of Naples \u201cFederico II\u201d, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0178-2986","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Riccardo","family":"Scotto","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, Section of Infectious Disease, University of Naples \u201cFederico II\u201d, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Nicola","family":"Schiano Moriello","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, Section of Infectious Disease, University of Naples \u201cFederico II\u201d, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Maria","family":"Foggia","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, Section of Infectious Disease, University of Naples \u201cFederico II\u201d, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4002-0930","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Agnese","family":"Giaccone","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, Section of Infectious Disease, University of Naples \u201cFederico II\u201d, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Gaetana","family":"Messina","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Toracic Surgery Unit, University of Campania \u201cLuigi Vanvitelli\u201d, 80138 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Paola","family":"Salvatore","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Molecular Medicine and Medical Biotechnology, University of Naples \u201cFederico II\u201d, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Antonio Riccardo","family":"Buonomo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, Section of Infectious Disease, University of Naples \u201cFederico II\u201d, 80131 Naples, Italy"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"name":"Federico II COVID-19 Team","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2021,10,29]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1061","DOI":"10.1001\/jama.2020.1585","article-title":"Clinical Characteristics of 138 Hospitalized Patients With 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Epidemiol."}],"container-title":["International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health"],"original-title":[],"language":"en","link":[{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/1660-4601\/18\/21\/11399\/pdf","content-type":"unspecified","content-version":"vor","intended-application":"similarity-checking"}],"deposited":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,11]],"date-time":"2025-10-11T07:22:58Z","timestamp":1760167378000},"score":1,"resource":{"primary":{"URL":"https:\/\/www.mdpi.com\/1660-4601\/18\/21\/11399"}},"subtitle":[],"short-title":[],"issued":{"date-parts":[[2021,10,29]]},"references-count":10,"journal-issue":{"issue":"21","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2021,11]]}},"alternative-id":["ijerph182111399"],"URL":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/ijerph182111399","relation":{},"ISSN":["1660-4601"],"issn-type":[{"value":"1660-4601","type":"electronic"}],"subject":[],"published":{"date-parts":[[2021,10,29]]}}}