{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,11]],"date-time":"2025-10-11T02:00:22Z","timestamp":1760148022004,"version":"build-2065373602"},"reference-count":15,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"3","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2023,3,22]],"date-time":"2023-03-22T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1679443200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"Universidad San Ignacio de Loyola"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["TropicalMed"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Cases of cryptococcosis have been reported in patients with COVID-19. The majority are in patients with severe symptoms or who received immunosuppressants. However, there is still no clear association between COVID-19 and cryptococcosis. We report eight cases of cerebral cryptococcosis associated with CD4+ T lymphocytopenia in non-HIV patients after SARS-CoV-2 infection. The median age was 57 years and 5\/8 were male. In addition, 2\/8 of patients had diabetes, and 8\/8 had a history of mild COVID-19, with a median of 75 days before diagnosis of cerebral cryptococcosis. All patients denied having received prior immunosuppressive therapy. The most frequent symptoms were confusion (8\/8), headache (7\/8), vomiting (6\/8), and nausea (6\/8) All patients were diagnosed by isolating Cryptococcus in cerebrospinal fluid. The median CD4+ and CD8+ T lymphocytes were 247 and 173.5, respectively. Other causes of immunosuppression, such as HIV or HTLV infection, were excluded in all patients. Finally, three patients died, and one presented long-term visual and auditory sequelae. The CD4+\/CD8+ T lymphocyte count normalized during follow-up in those patients who survived. We hypothesize that CD4+ T lymphocytopenia in the patients in this case series could increase the risk of cryptococcosis after SARS-CoV-2 infection.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/tropicalmed8030182","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2023,3,22]],"date-time":"2023-03-22T06:00:01Z","timestamp":1679464801000},"page":"182","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":3,"title":["Cerebral Cryptococcosis Associated with CD4+ T-lymphocytopenia in Non-HIV Patients after SARS-CoV-2 Infection: Case Series in a Specialized Institute in Lima, Peru"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"8","author":[{"given":"Juana M.","family":"Huamani-C\u00f3rdova","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Neurol\u00f3gicas, Lima 15003, Peru"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-8049-7787","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Miguel","family":"Hueda-Zavaleta","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad Privada de Tacna, Tacna 23003, Peru"},{"name":"Hospital III Daniel Alcides Carri\u00f3n\u2014Essalud, Tacna 23000, Peru"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Victor","family":"Vargas-Bellina","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Neurol\u00f3gicas, Lima 15003, Peru"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Lourdes","family":"Simbron-Ribbeck","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Neurol\u00f3gicas, Lima 15003, Peru"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Katty del Rosario","family":"Chong-Chinchay","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Instituto Nacional de Ciencias Neurol\u00f3gicas, Lima 15003, Peru"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4566-2027","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Juan Carlos","family":"G\u00f3mez de la Torre","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Roe Clinical Laboratory, Lima 15076, Peru"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9158-1108","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Vicente A.","family":"Ben\u00edtes-Zapata","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Unidad de Investigaci\u00f3n para la Generaci\u00f3n y S\u00edntesis de Evidencias en Salud, Universidad San Ignacio de Loyola, Lima 15024, Peru"}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2023,3,22]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","first-page":"753","article-title":"Origin, transmission, diagnosis and management of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19)","volume":"96","author":"Umakanthan","year":"2020","journal-title":"Postgrad. 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