Cryptococcus neoformans can infect not only HIV-positive patients and non-HIV-infected immunocompromised patients, but also apparently immunocompetent patients.^1-3 With a declining incidence of AIDS-related cryptococcosis in the HAART era, and increasing use of immunosuppressants worldwide, non-HIV infected individuals (with or without predisposing factors) may become the predominant infected group^1-4. In contrast to immunocompromised patients, few reports have described the variety of C. neoformans, clinical presentation, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) parameters and prognosis associated with cryptococcal infections among immunocompetent individuals. Such knowledge can assist in the clinical management of cryptococcosis.

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2. Rozenbaum R, Goncalves AJ. Clinical epidemiological study of 171 cases of cryptococcosis. Clin Infect Dis 1994; 18:369–80.
3. Pappas PG, Perfect JR, Cloud GA, Larsen RA, Pankey GA, Lancaster DJ, Henderson H, Kauffman CA, Haas DW, Saccente M, Hamill RJ, Holloway MS, Warren RM, Dismukes WE. Cryptococcosis in human immunodeficiency virus-negative patients in the era of effective azole therapy. Clin Infect Dis 2001; 33:690–9.
4. Friedman GD, Jeffrey Fessel W, Udaltsova NV, Hurley LB. Cryptococcosis: the 1981–2000 epidemic. Mycoses 2005; 48:122–5.
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6. LUI, N. LEE, M. IP, K.W. CHOI, Y.K. TSO et al Q J Med 2006; 99:143–151
7. Dimitrios I. Zonios, Judith Falloon, John E. Bennett, Pamela A. Shaw, Doreen Chaitt BLOOD, 15 JULY 2008 _ VOLUME 112, NUMBER 2

Deepak K J

Associate Professor Department of Internal Medicine Bangalore Medical College and Research Institute, Bangalore, India