4Y1M 2Y3M 夏型過敏性肺炎？Trichosporon cutaneum pneumonia?

（写真はフラットの入り口の中華正月用飾り。）　チャイニーズニューイヤーの週は肺炎のため自宅療養。高熱ではないが、数日３８C程の熱が下がらず、抗生物質の注射の為毎日病院へ通ったが倦怠感が激しかった。

調べてみると、夏型過敏性肺炎というのがエアコンの中や古い木の家具にあるカビでおきるらしい。また、築７年以上マンションの低層階で発生しやすく（日が当たらず、湿気てる）、家に一日中いる主婦がそのカビに対してアレルギー体質になりやすく、肺炎に発展してしまうことがあるそうだ。

すべての条件（常夏、湿度、エアコンつけっぱなし、古い木の家具、築１０年以上の低層階で・・・・）にあっているから非常に怪しい。

思い返すと、風邪が治りかけで日本から帰ってきて数日後の夜、いきなり鼻水とのど痛で起きた。次の日も同じ症状で起きた。その３０分ほどを除くと朝晩全く普通だったので、アレルギー用にと医者にもらっていた鼻用スプレーをして寝たらそれ以降おきなかったので忘れていた。それから一週間ほどたった、金曜日の夜からずっと熱がでた。

このフラット、風が通らないので、寝る時はエアコンをつけっぱなし。台所は相変わらず戸棚の扉が腐った感じで流しの下はかび臭く、セカンドバスルームの戸や洗面台の下は木が腐っている。

もともと、引っ越してきて以来、フラットにアレルギー反応を示しているかのようにくしゃみや鼻水が止まらず耳鼻科に通った。簡単な血液検査では原因となるアルゲンが特定できなかったが、エアコンを分解掃除してもらうか、引っ越すかしたほうがいいと医者には言われたっけ・・・。

(This photo shows the CNY display at our flat entrance.) During CNY, I was mostly in bed. I was diagnosed to have early stage of Pneumonia and went back to hospital everyday to get injection. I was still so tired and had no energy.

When I looked up, there is a type of pneumonia caused by Trichosporon cutaneum, a kind of fungus which lives in air conditioning system or old rotten furniture. It's usually common in summer when people use air conditioning. Because of the nature of the fungus, it's more common in lower floors of flats, of which the building is more than 7 years old. What's more, hose wives, who stay longer at home, have more tendency to develop allergic reaction to it, which is leading to pneumonia.

Wow! All the conditions meet my living situation; living in all-year-round summer environment, at a ground floor flat of more than 10 years old, surrounded by old furniture especially some of the wooden doors and a wooden underneath of washing basin are rotten....

It started so strangely. I caught a cold in Japan but it was getting better when we came back. However about a week after we were back, I was woken up by sudden intense coughs and runny nose. It lasted for only about 30 minutes and that was it. But it happened another day. Strangely, except for the 30 minute, I was more or less fine. As I remembered my doctor gave me some nose spray to allergy, I sprayed it before going to bed, and since, I'd been fine.

And on Friday before CNY, I suddenly developed a temperature, not so high but about 38C, and it didn't drop for 4 to 5 days.

Since I moved into this flat, I haven't been quite happy about the place. We have to run the air conditioning all night as it's too hot and no breeze, apart from the fact there are so many mosquitoes to keep open the windows. And kitchen smells always mouldy and under the sink, it's really smelly.

I'd been to see a nose and throat specialist before as I couldn't stop sneezing since I arrived here. He could not find any particular alleges but he advised me to have all the air conditioning serviced, to take them apart and clean thoroughly, as there may be black mould which causes allergy, or move out of the place.