Two men in upstate New York died of pneumonia after using bat feces as fertilizer to grow cannabis.
The 64- and 59-year-old men had smoked marijuana contaminated with a fungus found in guano, causing fatal lung infections in both men.
Both deaths occurred in Rochester and were unrelated to each other, highlighting the growing trend of using bat droppings to grow cannabis.
One bought guano online and another contracted the disease by drinking guano from a bat colony in his attic.
Online sources call guano a “natural superfood” for growing cannabis, but it can contain dangerous bacteria, fungi or viruses that can make people seriously ill.
In the new cases, the stool contained a fungus called Histoplasma capsulatum, native to the eastern half of the United States.
It is found in bat and bird droppings, and occurs naturally in soil.
Most people contract the disease by inhaling spores of the fungus, although it is also possible to contract the infection through the mouth.
The doctors wrote that the use of guano in home-grown marijuana plants appears to be a “recent trend.” They urge avoiding fertilizer unless you can verify that it has been independently tested for fungi and other pathogens.
Once this fungus, shown here under the microscope, enters the body, it takes between three and 17 days for symptoms to appear. It is not transmitted between humans and outbreaks are limited to people who have direct contact with contaminated soil or other products.
Once there, it can cause serious lung infections that make breathing difficult and can lead to death.
Specialists from the University of Rochester, who wrote about the cases in the magazine. Infectious Diseases Open Forumsaying: “It is crucial to raise awareness among doctors and patients to reinforce personal preventive measures and establish a timely diagnosis.”
This anonymous 59-year-old man from upstate New York had a history of excessive tobacco and marijuana use, which likely caused his emphysema.
Emphysema is a lung disease that affects the alveoli within the lungs and makes it difficult to breathe.
He had also been using a drug that weakens the immune system, called adalimumab, to control his arthritis.
He initially arrived at the hospital complaining of shortness of breath, a sore throat, and weight loss that had been persistent for approximately six weeks.
Doctors found small masses on his throat and vocal cords that they initially thought might have been cancer, but upon further investigation, they turned out to be wounds formed in response to the fungus.
It caused pneumonia, a lung infection in which fluid or pus fills the lungs and inhibits breathing.
Despite treatment with antifungal medications, the patient continued to struggle to breathe and eventually died.
Common early signs of histoplasmosis include fever, cough, fatigue, chills, headache, chest pain, and body aches.
In severe cases, this develops into a long-term lung infection, which can lead to breathing problems, pneumonia, and death. These side effects are more common in smokers and people with weakened immune systems.
CDC map showing approximate areas with Histoplasma presence in the US.
The fungus Histoplasma capsulatum is found naturally in the soil of the eastern half of the US, as well as in the droppings of multiple species of birds and bats native to that part of the country.
In very rare cases, this fungus can spread from the respiratory tract to other parts of the body. This occurred in the second case study patient, a 64-year-old man with a history of heart disease and excessive tobacco and cannabis use.
After arriving at the hospital complaining of a chronic cough and 35 pounds of weight loss, doctors questioned him and discovered he had been collecting bat droppings from an infestation in his attic to use as fertilizer for his marijuana plants.
Digging deeper into his case, they found irregular clumps of cells in the man’s lungs, chest, pancreas and adrenal glands, causing inflammation that made it difficult to breathe and digest food.
The fungal infection had spread from the respiratory tract to the stomach.
Although he initially appeared to improve when doctors treated him with a large dose of antifungal medications, the patient eventually died because blood flow from the masses to his intestines was cut off.
According to doctors from the CDC, The fungus is less likely to be fatal in younger, healthier people.
Estimates of the American Thoracic Society Let’s say up to 250,000 Americans get sick from this virus each year.
However, only 5 to 7 percent of people with the disease die.
Still, with marijuana legalization becoming more common, doctors at the University of Rochester said, doctors should be alert to the possibility of more cases emerging.
They said: “A wide range of the population may be at risk of contracting the disease through this exposure.”