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Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia

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Definition:

This is an infection of the lungs caused by the fungus Pneumocystis carinii , now renamed Pneumocystis jiroveci .

Alternative Names:

Pneumocystosis; PCP; Pneumocystis jiroveci

Causes, incidence, and risk factors:

PCP is a pneumonia caused by the fungal organism Pneumocystis carinii , which is widespread in the environment, and is not a pathogen (does not cause illness) in healthy individuals.

However, in individuals with weakened immune systems due to cancer, HIV/AIDS, solid organ and/or bone marrow transplantation, as well as individuals receiving chronic corticosteroids or other medications that affect the immune system, Pneumocystis carinii may lead to a lung infection.

Individuals with advanced AIDS are of particular interest, since PCP was a relatively rare infection prior to the AIDS epidemic. Before the use of preventive antibiotics for PCP, up to 70% of individuals in the U.S. with advanced AIDS would develop PCP.

PCP in the setting of AIDS usually develops slowly and is less severe -- several weeks of cough, fevers, and progressive shortness of breath, especially with exertion. Individuals with PCP who do not have AIDS usually get sick faster and are more acutely ill.

• Review Date: 2/13/2006
• Reviewed By: Monica Gandhi, M.D., M.P.H., Assistant Professor, Division of Infectious Diseases, UCSF, San Francisco, CA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

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