Epidemiology of IFIs: an update

Ref ID: 17713

Author:

J.V. Guinea Ortega

Author address:

Madrid, ES)

Full conference title:

22nd European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases

Abstract:

The growing number of immunocompromised patients could account
for the increased number of invasive fungal infections (IFIs) detected.
However, the use of corticosteroids, intravascular devices, and other
aggressive procedures may also be responsible for the increase in the
number and different types of patients at risk of developing IFIs. An
accurate study of the epidemiology of IFIs requires reliable diagnostic
tools, yet our knowledge of epidemiology in IFIs is limited by the
difficulty in establishing a diagnosis.
Invasive candidiasis is the most common IFI and is particularly
prevalent in patients carrying intravascular catheters, those undergoing
abdominal surgery, and very-low-birth-weight newborns. Although
Candida albicans is still the main etiologic agent in invasive
candidiasis, other non-albicans Candida species are becoming increasingly
prevalent. Knowledge of local epidemiology is important, as
susceptibility to antifungal agents is mainly based on the species
involved, which vary with geography. Furthermore, widespread use of
antifungal agents is also contributing to antifungal resistance.
Invasive aspergillosis and other mold infections have classically
affected patients with hematological cancer in periods of deep and
prolonged neutropenia and recipients of solid organ or bone marrow
transplant. Today, the population at risk of acquiring mold infections is
more heterogeneous and includes patients with chronic lung diseases
receiving long-term corticosteroid therapy. Environmental factors may
also contribute to invasive aspergillosis in patients with a relatively
sound immune status, such as those undergoing major surgery. Invasive
aspergillosis is caused mainly by Aspergillus fumigatus; however,
recent advances in fungal taxonomy have uncovered a more complex

Abstract Number: NULL

Conference Year: 2012

Link to conference website: NULL

New link: NULL

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