blastomycosis

noun

blas·​to·​my·​co·​sis ˌbla-stə-ˌmī-ˈkō-səs How to pronounce blastomycosis (audio)
: any of several fungal infections
especially : an infectious disease caused by a yeast fungus (Blastomyces dermititidis) that affects especially the lungs and skin

Examples of blastomycosis in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Wisconsin cases of blastomycosis in dogs In Feb. 2022, a veterinarian in St. Croix County, Wisconsin, told the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture Trade and Consumer Protection and the Wisconsin Department of Health Services that four dogs were diagnosed with blastomycosis. USA TODAY, 30 Jan. 2024 Overall, the state had four blastomycosis deaths in 2023. Detroit Free Press, 22 Feb. 2024 Wisconsin, the state with the highest rate of blastomycosis, has an average of 2.1 cases per 100,000 people. Arkansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin are the only five states that have a public health surveillance for blastomycosis. USA TODAY, 30 Jan. 2024 Only five states — Arkansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin — have public health surveillance for blastomycosis. Kaitlin Sullivan, NBC News, 24 Jan. 2024 But, this particular area of the county hadn't seen a human blastomycosis case in at least 10 years, though there was an unofficial report of a dog dying of the infection in 2021. Beth Mole, Ars Technica, 31 Mar. 2023 People can get blastomycosis after breathing in the microscopic fungal spores from the air, the CDC says. Vanessa Etienne, Peoplemag, 7 Feb. 2024 Some other fungal diseases of humans are also on the move, such as histoplasmosis and blastomycosis. Mark Takahashi, Ars Technica, 27 Sep. 2023 Those are Valley fever in the dry Southwestern US; histoplasmosis in the damp Ohio River valley; and blastomycosis, with a range that stretched from the Great Lakes down the Mississippi to New Orleans, and as far east as the Virginia coast. Maryn McKenna, WIRED, 25 Aug. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'blastomycosis.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

New Latin Blastomyces, singular of Blastomycetes, former taxon comprising yeasts (from blasto- blasto- + -mycetes, borrowed from Greek mýkētes, plural of mýkēs "mushroom, fungus") + -osis — more at myc-

Note: The disease-causing agent of blastomycosis is given the specific name Blastomyces dermatitidis by T. Caspar Gilchrist and William Royal Stokes in "A case of pseudo-lupus vulgaris caused by a blastomyces," Journal of Experimental Medicine, vol. 3 (1898), p. 76.

First Known Use

1899, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of blastomycosis was in 1899

Dictionary Entries Near blastomycosis

Cite this Entry

“Blastomycosis.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/blastomycosis. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Medical Definition

blastomycosis

noun
blas·​to·​my·​co·​sis -ˌmī-ˈkō-səs How to pronounce blastomycosis (audio)
plural blastomycoses -ˌsēz How to pronounce blastomycosis (audio)
: either of two infectious diseases caused by yeastlike fungi see blastomyces, north american blastomycosis, south american blastomycosis
blastomycotic adjective

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