How Blastomycosis is Treated
Half of the people infected with Blastomycosis never develop symptoms. In mild and moderate cases, blastomycosis needs to be treated with antifungal medication. You may be on medication for as few as a couple weeks, or in some cases, a year or longer. This depends on how ill you are, if the fungus has spread beyond your lungs and your overall health status, including if you are currently living with a chronic lung disease or have a compromised immune system.
It will be important to maintain communication with your healthcare provider about your symptoms once you begin treatment. If your shortness of breath and cough aren’t getting better after a week, or if you experience new symptoms that are worrisome, your healthcare provider needs to know.
Signs of serious illness that require care at an emergency department include severe shortness of breath, chest pain, coughing up blood, seizures, confusion and high fever.
Recovery from blastomycosis may take weeks, months or even a year or more.
Preventing Blastomycosis
There isn’t a reliable test to determine if a specific area has Blastgomyces, so it’s best to simply be aware of where it is commonly found. This includes most of central and eastern United States. Among those areas, Wisconsin and Minnesota record the highest number of illnesses.
There aren’t very many practical measures to prevent exposure. There are a few things you can do to lower your risk of exposure, including avoiding large areas of dirt and near water. And if you aren’t able to do that, you could wear an N95 mask to help filter the air you breathe.
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Page last updated: October 3, 2025
