[The possibility of an etiopathogenetic role of the fungi isolated from the respiratory tract (author's transl)].

The large number of fungous strains isolated from specimens coming from the respiratory tract is a possible source of diagnostic failures. For an accurate diagnosis it is necessary to screen between fungi in a saprophitic and in a parasitic position. This is very difficult both for fungi, which are largely spread in the environment, like Aspergillus sp., and for fungi, which are commonly found on the mucous membranes, like Candida or Torulopsis sp. The actual pathogenetic activity of a fungous strain may be established on a mycological approach by means of an accurate taxonomic definition: only few species have pathogenetic possibilities: f.i. A. fumigatus, C. albicans. For a clinical-immunological approach are very useful the presence of debilitating diseases and the defectiveness of immunological tests, especially those of delayed hypersentivitity.