Lobo's disease

Lobo’s disease, also known as lobomycosis or lacaziosis, is a blastomycosis, a fungal infection of the skin caused by Lacazia loboi (formerly named Loboa loboi)^[1], and discovered by Brazilian dermatologist Jorge Lobo. Other names which were given to the disease are: keloidal blastomycosis, Amazonian blastomycosis, blastomycoid granuloma, miraip and piraip. These last two names were given by natives of the Amazon and mean that which burns.

This disease is usually found in humans and bottle-nosed dolphins.

Lacazia loboi is characterized by long chains of spherical cells interconnected by tubules. The cells appear to be yeast-like with a diameter of 5 -12 μm. The disease is chronic and is characterized by keloidal nodular lesions occurring on the face, ears, or extremities.

The disease is often misdiagnosed as Blastomyces dermatitidis or Paracoccidiodes brasiliensis due to its similar morphology.

• 
  Keloidal Blastomycosis
  Adapted from Dermatology Atlas
• 
  Keloidal Blastomycosis
  Adapted from Dermatology Atlas

The disease is endemic in rural regions in South America and Central America.

Lesions in dolphins occur on the dorsal fin, head, flukes, and peduncle. In January 2006, a potential epidemic of lobomycosis was reported in dolphins of the Indian River Lagoon in Florida.^[2]

• Rodriguez-Toro G. Lobomycosis. Int J Dermatol. 1993 May;32(5):324-32. Review. PMID 8505156
• Sameer Elsayed, Susan M. Kuhn, Duane Barber, Deirdre L. Church, Stewart Adams, and Richard Kasper Human Case of Lobomycosis. Emerging Infectious Diseases, Vol. 10, No. 4, April 2004.

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