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Paecilomyces variotii (P. variotii) is an extremely rare cause of continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) peritonitis. When diagnosed, it usually portends poor prognosis. Patient's survival depends on early laboratory diagnosis and proper treatment. We herein report a P. variotii peritonitis in a patient on CAPD which is a quite rare clinical entity. Laboratory diagnosis was confirmed via both morphological analysis and DNA sequencing. Antifungal susceptibility tests were performed and interpreted according to the Clinical Laboratory Standards Institute M38-A2 guidelines. After laboratory diagnosis, the patient was treated succesfully with liposomal amphotericin B and itraconazole combination and the peritoneal catheter was removed. This case is worthy of reporting since P. variotii is an uncommon cause of peritonitis and leads to dilemmas in both laboratory diagnosis and treatment strategies., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Paecilomyces variotii has previously been reported as a causative pathogen for peritonitis in patients on continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis and shown to be usually sensitive to amphotericin B and resistant to voriconazole. We report the first case, to our knowledge, of P. variotii peritonitis in a liver transplant patient, which was unresponsive to initial liposomal amphotericin B (L-AmB) treatment and resolved dramatically after the addition of voriconazole. The present case provides evidence for the clinical and microbiological effectiveness of voriconazole combined with L-AmB in treating P. variotii peritonitis refractory to initial L-AmB treatment.

Fungal peritonitis (FP) is a serious complication in patients on continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD). We report a case of CAPD-related FP caused by Paecilomyces lilacinus in a 15-year-old uraemic boy. The infection was successfully treated by combination therapy consisting of oral voriconazole and terbinafine, which has not been previously reported in the treatment of FP.

While filamentous fungi are a rare cause of peritonitis in peritoneal dialysis patients, there is increasing recognition of Paecilomyces species as pathogens in such patients. We herein report a case of fungal peritonitis secondary to the filamentous Paecilomyces variotii species. The patient had a long and ultimately fatal course of illness despite catheter removal, discontinuation of peritoneal dialysis, recurrent intraabdominal abscess drainage, and prolonged courses of antifungal therapy. Our experience with this case and a review of the literature suggests that infection with this fungus can cause substantial morbidity and is probably best treated with prompt catheter removal, aggressive antifungal therapy and vigilant observation for complications.

Fungal infection is a rare cause of peritonitis in patients on chronic peritoneal dialysis. In this population, fungi are found in less than 2 percent of all cases of primary episodes of peritonitis (1). More often, a primary bacterial peritonitis treated with antibiotic therapy leads to secondary fungal infection (2). Candida species cause 74.5% of the episodes of fungal peritonitis (2). The fungi invade the peritoneal cavity from the skin peri- or intraluminally through the catheter (3). Filamentous fungi are rare (4,5). Treatment of fungal peritonitis commonly consists of removal of catheter and antifungal drugs (3). Here we describe two cases of fungal peritonitis caused by mycelial fungi, where the source of the microorganism could be special containers used for biological waste, which are popular in Germany

Four cases of peritonitis caused by the filamentous fungus Paecilomyces variotii in patients on continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis are reported. Removal of the Tenckhoff catheter and antifungal chemotherapy led to resolution of symptoms in all cases. Possible contaminating events are discussed, and reported infections with P. variotii are reviewed.

A 65-year-old woman maintained on continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD) presented with a 5-month history of intermittent cloudy bags and sterile peritoneal and peripheral blood eosinophilia, which failed to clear despite conventional antibiotics. Impaired catheter inflow and delayed effluent drainage gradually occurred and intracatheter streptokinase, administered to rectify catheter dysfunction, dislodged a catheter cast composed of fungal hyphae of Paecilomyces variotii. Fungal peritonitis and Paecilomyces fungemia ensued, which were treated with amphotericin B and catheter removal. Peripheral eosinophilia rapidly resolved. Paecilomyces is a saprophytic fungus found in soil and water that is capable of infecting prosthetic devices. Eosinophils may have accumulated in this case in response to particulate fungal cell antigens being washed into the peritoneal cavity during dialysis. Chronic fungal catheter infection should be excluded in cases of late onset, persistant peritoneal eosinophilia on CAPD.

A patient on peritoneal dialysis developed peritonitis due to Paecilomyces variotii. It appears that this relatively rare organism may be starting to assert itself as a more important human pathogen. A plea is made for speciation.