Coccidioidomycosis (also known as Valley fever and California valley fever) is a fungal disease caused by Coccidioides immitis or C. posadasii. It is endemic in certain parts of Arizona, California, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Utah and northwestern Mexico. C. immitis resides in the soil in certain parts of the southwestern United States, northern Mexico, and a few other areas in the Western Hemisphere. Infection is caused by inhalation of airborne, fungal particles known as arthroconidia, which are a form of spore. The disease is not transmitted from person to person.
Symptomatic infection (40% of cases) usually presents as an infl uenza-like illness with fever, cough, headaches, rash, and myalgia (muscle pain). Some patients fail to recover and develop chronic pulmonary infection or widespread disseminated infection (affecting meninges, soft tissues, joints, and bone). Severe pulmonary disease may develop in HIV-infected persons.
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