There are more than 60 different species of opossum, which are often called possums. The most notable is the Virginia opossum or common opossumâthe only marsupial (pouched mammal) found in the United States and Canada. A female opossum gives birth to helpless young as tiny as honeybees.
Disseminated cryptococcosis, particularly with peritonitis, is an uncommon manifestation of Cryptococcus neoformans infection. Liver cirrhosis serves as a risk factor for disseminated disease in HIV-negative patients.
Pneumococcal disease is a very serious infection that causes pneumonia, meningitis, and bloodstream infection (sepsis). About one million US adults get pneumococcal pneumonia every year and 5 to 7 percent will die from it. Fewer will get pneumococcal meningitis or sepsis, but the mortality rate in this group is higher (10 percent or more). In the US, pneumococcal pneumonia, meningitis, and bloodstream infections kill tens of thousands each year, including 18,000 adults age 65 years and older.