A case of cutaneous Paecilomyces formosus infection in an extremely premature infant

BackgroundMany types of weak pathogenic microorganisms often cause opportunistic infections in extremely preterm infants. Paecilomyces formosus is one such opportunistic fungus that can lead to a serious infection. Here, we report the clinical course of P. formosus infection in an extremely preterm infant.Case presentationAn extremely preterm male infant was born at 23 weeks of gestation. Six days after birth, he developed yellowish-brown nodules on the skin of the back extending to the buttocks. P. formosus was identified by culture of samples from the cutaneous lesions. We treated the infection with intravenous micafungin and lanoconazole ointment application. The skin lesions improved dramatically and healed without scar tissue formation.ConclusionNeonatologists should consider opportunistic P. formosus infections. This is the first report to describe that micafungin is effective for P. formosus cutaneous infection in extremely premature infants.