Pemphigus and coccidioidomycosis

During the last 5 years the authors have been involved in the treatment of 12 patients with various forms of pemphigus. Ten of these patients were treated with oral corticosteroids. The usual and expected steroid complications were observed, but the authors here comment on opportunistic infections with coccidioides immitis, the causative agent of coccidioidomycosis. This fungal disease was responsible for the only death in this series of patients and for extraordinary morbidity and disability in a second patient.