{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,5]],"date-time":"2026-09-05T00:36:14Z","timestamp":1788568574401,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":34,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"12","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2023,11,25]],"date-time":"2023-11-25T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1700870400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"IMMY (ImmunoMycologics Inc., Norman, OK, USA)"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["JoF"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Cryptococcosis in HIV-negative patients can be an opportunistic or endemic disease. There are no published studies on the use of the finger-prick whole blood (point-of-care) cryptococcal antigen lateral flow assay (CrAg LFA) for diagnosing cryptococcosis in HIV-negative patients. We conducted a case series study of HIV-negative patients with cryptococcosis in two centers in S\u00e3o Paulo, Brazil. The objectives were to identify the sensitivity of a finger-prick whole blood CrAg LFA and to describe the main characteristics of this population. We identified 30 HIV-negative patients with cryptococcosis [19 (63%), male; median age, 47 years]. Ten (33%) patients were immunosuppressed, ten (33%) had other comorbidities, and ten (33%) were apparently immunocompetent and without comorbidities. The distribution of the sites of cryptococcosis was as follows: the central nervous system, 90% (n = 27); pulmonary, 43% (n = 13); and other extrapulmonary sites, 40% (n = 12). The sensitivity of the finger-prick whole blood CrAg LFA for the diagnosis of cryptococcosis was 97% (29\/30). Among 26 participants with cryptococcal meningitis, the sensitivity of testing cerebrospinal fluid was as follows: CrAg latex agglutination, 77% (20\/26); CrAg LFA, 96% (25\/26); and culture, 81% (21\/26). Culture speciation identified Cryptococcus gattii in 16 (62%) cases, and all had a positive finger-prick whole blood CrAg LFA. This test presented high sensitivity to the diagnosis of cryptococcosis in HIV-negative patients, including those caused by C. gattii.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/jof9121140","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2023,11,27]],"date-time":"2023-11-27T03:32:03Z","timestamp":1701055923000},"page":"1140","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":6,"title":["Finger-Prick Whole Blood Cryptococcal Antigen Lateral Flow Assay for the Diagnosis of Cryptococcosis in HIV-Negative Patients: A Case Series Study in Two Tertiary Centers in S\u00e3o Paulo, Brazil"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"9","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7830-8716","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jos\u00e9 E.","family":"Vidal","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Departamento de Neurologia, Instituto de Infectologia Em\u00edlio Ribas, S\u00e3o Paulo 01246-900, Brazil"},{"name":"Departamento de Mol\u00e9stias Infecciosas e Parasit\u00e1rias, Hospital das Cl\u00ednicas da Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de S\u00e3o Paulo, S\u00e3o Paulo 05403-000, Brazil"},{"name":"Laborat\u00f3rio de Investiga\u00e7\u00e3o M\u00e9dica (LIM 49) da Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de S\u00e3o Paulo, S\u00e3o Paulo 05403-000, Brazil"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Fernanda Gurgel","family":"Oliveira","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Departamento de Infectologia, Instituto de Infectologia Em\u00edlio Ribas, S\u00e3o Paulo 01246-900, Brazil"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-0255-8780","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Marcela","family":"Vieira","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Departamento de Infectologia, Instituto de Infectologia Em\u00edlio Ribas, S\u00e3o Paulo 01246-900, Brazil"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-0725-4594","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Luisa","family":"Pereira","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Departamento de Infectologia, Instituto de Infectologia Em\u00edlio Ribas, S\u00e3o Paulo 01246-900, Brazil"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Rodovaldo M.","family":"Lucas Junior","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Departamento de Infectologia, Instituto de Infectologia Em\u00edlio Ribas, S\u00e3o Paulo 01246-900, Brazil"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-8391-2117","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Bruno Fukelman","family":"Guedes","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Departamento de Neurologia, Hospital das Cl\u00ednicas da Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de S\u00e3o Paulo, S\u00e3o Paulo 05403-000, Brazil"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7996-8265","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Marcello Chaves","family":"Magri","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Departamento de Mol\u00e9stias Infecciosas e Parasit\u00e1rias, Hospital das Cl\u00ednicas da Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de S\u00e3o Paulo, S\u00e3o Paulo 05403-000, Brazil"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-4715-0060","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"David R.","family":"Boulware","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Division of Infectious Diseases and International Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2023,11,25]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e00357-16","DOI":"10.1128\/mSphere.00357-16","article-title":"The Case for Adopting the \u201cSpecies Complex\u201d Nomenclature for the Etiologic Agents of Cryptococcosis","volume":"2","author":"Bennett","year":"2017","journal-title":"mSphere"},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"179","DOI":"10.1016\/j.idc.2015.10.006","article-title":"Cryptococcosis","volume":"30","author":"Maziarz","year":"2016","journal-title":"Infect. 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