A new threat: Candida auris

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has advised healthcare providers to watch for a type of yeast – Candida auris – which has been causing severe illness in hospitalized patients. What makes C. auris so threatening is that it is difficult to identify, and it does not respond to commonly used antifungal drugs.

Limited data suggest that the risk factors for Candida auris infections are generally similar to risk factors for other types of Candida infections, according to CDC. These risk factors include recent surgery, diabetes, broad-spectrum antibiotic and antifungal use. People who have recently spent time in nursing homes and have lines and tubes that go into their body (such as breathing tubes, feeding tubes and central venous catheters) seem to be at highest risk for C. auris infection. Infections have been found in patients of all ages, from preterm infants to the elderly.

C. auris has caused bloodstream infections, wound infections, and ear infections. It also has been isolated from respiratory and urine specimens, but it is unclear if it causes infections in the lung or bladder. CDC reports that it doesn’t know if patients with invasive C. auris infection are more likely to die than patients with other invasive Candida infections. Based on information from a limited number of patients, 30% to 60% of people with C. auris infections have died. However, many of these people had other serious illnesses that also increased their risk of death.

C. auris is harder to identify from cultures than other, more common types of Candida. For example, it can be confused with other types of yeasts, particularly Candida haemulonii. That’s why special laboratory tests are needed to identify it.

Most C. auris infections are treatable with a class of antifungal drugs called echinocandins, according to CDC. However, some C. auris infections have been resistant to all three main classes of antifungal medications, making them more difficult to treat. In this situation, multiple classes of antifungals at high doses may be required to treat the infection.

For more information, see “General Information about Candida auris,” https://www.cdc.gov/fungal/candida-auris/candida-auris-qanda.html

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