coccidioidomycosis

American  

[kok-sid-ee-oi-doh-mahy-koh-sis] / kɒkˌsɪd iˌɔɪ doʊ maɪˈkoʊ sɪs /

noun

Pathology.

1. a fungal infection caused by inhaling Coccidioides spores, characterized by fever, respiratory illness, and reddish bumps on the skin, contracted especially in the southwestern United States and parts of Mexico, Central America, and South America: While not an uncommon ailment, most people who breathe in the spores do not develop an infection.

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coccidioidomycosis British  

/ kɒkˌsɪdɪˌɔɪdəʊmaɪˈkəʊsɪs /

noun

1. a disease of the skin or viscera, esp the lungs, caused by infection with the fungus Coccidioides immitis

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Etymology

Origin of coccidioidomycosis

First recorded in 1935–40; Coccidioid(es) ( def. ) + -o- ( def. ) + mycosis ( def. )

Example Sentences

Valley fever, or coccidioidomycosis, is a lung infection that people get when they breathe in spores of the fungus, coccidioides, that lives in dry soil, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

From Los Angeles Times • May 29, 2025

Eventually one test turned up an answer: a fungal infection called coccidioidomycosis, usually known as Valley fever.

From Scientific American • May 18, 2021

The fungi that cause valley fever, or coccidioidomycosis, live in desert soil.

From US News • Jul. 28, 2016

Last month, a federal court order demanded that the state move from the Central Valley 2,600 inmates at risk of contracting coccidioidomycosis, or valley fever — a potentially lethal disease.

From New York Times • Jul. 15, 2013

The diagnosis: "valley fever," or coccidioidomycosis, a dust-borne disease caused by the microscopic spores of a fungus, Coccidioides immitis.

From Time Magazine Archive