Aspergillosis is the name of a group of conditions caused by a fungal mould called aspergillus.
It usually affects the respiratory system (windpipe, sinuses and lungs), but it can spread to anywhere in the body.
Depending on a number of factors, the symptoms of aspergillosis can vary in severity from mild wheezing to coughing up blood. Someone with a weakened immune system is at greater risk of being more severely affected.
Aspergillosis is caused by breathing in small spores of aspergillus mould. Most people's immune systems will quickly isolate and destroy the mould before it can spread to their lungs.
It's almost impossible to avoid the aspergillus fungus completely, but there are precautions you can take to prevent aspergillosis.
If you have asthma, a weakened immune system, or a history of lung disease, you should avoid places where the aspergillus fungus is likely to be, such as:
- compost heaps
grain stores
rotting vegetation
piles of dead leaves
marshland and bogs
forests
Information via NHS: http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Aspergillosis/Pages/Introduction.aspx
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