# Did Dylan or his doctors even figure out how he contracted the lung infection histoplasmosis? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [March 16, 2020, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-dylan-or-his-doctors-even-figure-out-how-he-contracted-the-lung-infection-histoplasmosis/849598 "2020-03-16T18:16:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mangosteen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Mangosteen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangosteen)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-dylan-or-his-doctors-even-figure-out-how-he-contracted-the-lung-infection-histoplasmosis/849598/1 "2020-03-16T18:16:54Z")
I thought I heard it was from his raising chickens, but I don’t know how accurate that is. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-dylan-or-his-doctors-even-figure-out-how-he-contracted-the-lung-infection-histoplasmosis/849598/2 "2020-03-16T18:23:37Z")
Chickens are a well-known carrier of the disease. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-dylan-or-his-doctors-even-figure-out-how-he-contracted-the-lung-infection-histoplasmosis/849598/3 "2020-03-16T18:47:17Z")
You don’t need exposure to chicken or bat manure (known as histoplasmosis vectors) to contract the disease. Here in the Ohio Valley, it’s an extremely common infection (most cases are mild or subclinical), to the point that there are numerous false positives on chest x-rays where mediastinal lymph nodes appear pathologically enlarged, due to granulomatous inflammation (often partially calcified) caused by histo. Patients typically don’t have exposure to chickens or similar risk factors. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 7:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-dylan-or-his-doctors-even-figure-out-how-he-contracted-the-lung-infection-histoplasmosis/849598/4 "2020-03-16T19:46:35Z")
Dylan? Bob Dylan? Or who? ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 7:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-dylan-or-his-doctors-even-figure-out-how-he-contracted-the-lung-infection-histoplasmosis/849598/5 "2020-03-16T19:50:16Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > Dylan? Bob Dylan? Or who? My thought exactly. ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-dylan-or-his-doctors-even-figure-out-how-he-contracted-the-lung-infection-histoplasmosis/849598/6 "2020-03-16T20:01:01Z")
Bob Dylan, 1997. ---
**Author:** ![Mangosteen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Mangosteen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangosteen)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2020, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-dylan-or-his-doctors-even-figure-out-how-he-contracted-the-lung-infection-histoplasmosis/849598/7 "2020-03-16T20:18:23Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > Dylan? Bob Dylan? Or who? Yes, sorry, I did mean Robert Zimmerman. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2020, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-dylan-or-his-doctors-even-figure-out-how-he-contracted-the-lung-infection-histoplasmosis/849598/8 "2020-03-17T02:54:59Z")
No, they didn’t bother. Doctors don’t care that much about how you got infected; their immediate task is to save you by treating that infection. Worrying about preventing re-infection and infection of others comes later. And usually by the County Health officials, not individual doctors. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2020, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-dylan-or-his-doctors-even-figure-out-how-he-contracted-the-lung-infection-histoplasmosis/849598/9 "2020-03-17T03:36:36Z")
> [@Mangosteen](#): > > Yes, sorry, I did mean Robert Zimmerman. When you’re talking about something that happened twenty-three years ago, a little context would help. ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2020, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-dylan-or-his-doctors-even-figure-out-how-he-contracted-the-lung-infection-histoplasmosis/849598/10 "2020-03-17T03:50:01Z")
I want serious nerd cred for thinking of Dylan Thomas first. ---
**Author:** ![OldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3bc359/32.png) [@OldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldGuy)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2020, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-dylan-or-his-doctors-even-figure-out-how-he-contracted-the-lung-infection-histoplasmosis/849598/11 "2020-03-17T04:32:31Z")
> [@CairoCarol](#): > > I want serious nerd cred for thinking of Dylan Thomas first. “He’s so uncool that when you say Dylan,he thinks your talking about Dylan Thomas…whoever he was.” – Simon and Garfunkle ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2020, 6:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-dylan-or-his-doctors-even-figure-out-how-he-contracted-the-lung-infection-histoplasmosis/849598/12 "2020-03-17T06:56:29Z")
> [@OldGuy](#): > > “He’s so uncool that when you say Dylan,he thinks your talking about Dylan Thomas…whoever he was.” – Simon and Garfunkle Hah! I’d completely forgotten that line. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2020, 9:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-dylan-or-his-doctors-even-figure-out-how-he-contracted-the-lung-infection-histoplasmosis/849598/13 "2020-03-17T09:31:43Z")
> [@CairoCarol](#): > > I want serious nerd cred for thinking of Dylan Thomas first. All I thought was an a zip code. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2020, 10:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-dylan-or-his-doctors-even-figure-out-how-he-contracted-the-lung-infection-histoplasmosis/849598/14 "2020-03-17T10:28:08Z")
> [@OldGuy](#): > > “He’s so uncool that when you say Dylan,he thinks your talking about Dylan Thomas…whoever he was.” – Simon and Garfunkle Almost. “He’s so unhip when you say Dylan/He thinks you’re talking about Dylan Thomas/Whoever he was” - Simon and Garfunkel. “Do not go gentle into that good night, Old age should burn and rave at close of day; Rage, rage against the dying of the light.” - Dylan Thomas ---
**Author:** ![EdelweissPirate](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8491ac/32.png) [@EdelweissPirate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EdelweissPirate)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2020, 1:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-dylan-or-his-doctors-even-figure-out-how-he-contracted-the-lung-infection-histoplasmosis/849598/15 "2020-03-17T13:01:18Z")
Is there any chance Simon & Garfunkel were taking a swipe at ur-hipsters who put Bob on a pedestal but were unaware of Thomas? ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2020, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-dylan-or-his-doctors-even-figure-out-how-he-contracted-the-lung-infection-histoplasmosis/849598/16 "2020-03-17T15:38:49Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Almost. > > “He’s so unhip when you say Dylan/He thinks you’re talking about Dylan Thomas/Whoever he was” - Simon and Garfunkel. > > **“Do not go gentle into that good night, Old age should burn and rave at close of day; Rage, rage against the dying of the light.”** - Dylan Thomas (My bolding) I saw that recited on stage a couple of weeks ago - by, of all people, [Rob Brydon](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GngYtc3nQWg). Who’d a thunk? j ---
**Author:** ![74westy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/74westy/32/3950_2.png) [@74westy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/74westy)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2020, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-dylan-or-his-doctors-even-figure-out-how-he-contracted-the-lung-infection-histoplasmosis/849598/17 "2020-03-18T22:44:33Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Almost. The man ain’t got no culture. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2020, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-dylan-or-his-doctors-even-figure-out-how-he-contracted-the-lung-infection-histoplasmosis/849598/18 "2020-03-18T22:59:10Z")
> [@EdelweissPirate](#): > > Is there any chance Simon & Garfunkel were taking a swipe at ur-hipsters who put Bob on a pedestal but were unaware of Thomas? Ummm, yeah. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [March 21, 2020, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-dylan-or-his-doctors-even-figure-out-how-he-contracted-the-lung-infection-histoplasmosis/849598/19 "2020-03-21T05:08:59Z")
Here’s more on (Bob) Dylan’s 1997 case: > **[Histoplasmosis (Dylan has it) comes from inhaling the spores](https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-1997-06-24-1997175010-story.html)** > **[Dylan Recovers From Heart Ailment](https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/dylan-recovers-from-heart-ailment-100577/)** > > Legend forced to cancel European tour set, scheduled U.S. shows in August still on > **[Bob Dylan in hospital after heart scare](https://www.independent.co.uk/news/bob-dylan-in-hospital-after-heart-scare-1263950.html)** > > Bob Dylan has been admitted to hospital suffering from severe chest pains and a disease as opaque as some of his lyrics. His management immediately cancelled his British tour, due to start next month.