invasive fungal disease
Recently Published Documents


TOTAL DOCUMENTS

400
(FIVE YEARS 144)

H-INDEX

36
(FIVE YEARS 7)

2022 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 81
Author(s):  
P. Lewis White ◽  
Jan Springer ◽  
Matt P. Wise ◽  
Hermann Einsele ◽  
Claudia Löffler ◽  
...  

The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in large numbers of patients requiring critical care management. With the established association between severe respiratory virus infection and invasive pulmonary aspergillosis (7.6% for COVID-19-associated pulmonary aspergillosis (CAPA)), the pandemic places a significant number of patients at potential risk from secondary invasive fungal disease. We described a case of CAPA with substantial supporting mycological evidence, highlighting the need to employ strategic diagnostic algorithms and weighted definitions to improve the accuracy in diagnosing CAPA.


2022 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan Huang ◽  
Chentao Liu ◽  
Xiangrong Zheng

AbstractThere is limited research into Invasive fungal disease (IFD) in children with no underlying disease. We undertook a retrospective study of children with IFD who did not suffer from another underlying disease, from June 2010 to March 2018 in Changsha, China. Nine children were identified. Eosinophil counts were elevated in six cases. The level of procalcitonin (PCT) was elevated in six cases. Fungal culture was positive in all patients, including eight cases of Cryptococcus neoformans and one case of Candida parapsilosis. 8.33 days following antifungal treatment, the body temperature of the eight patients affected by cryptococcal disease had returned to normal. Our study indicates that the primary pathogen in IFD was Cryptococcus neoformans in children who had no other underlying disease. Eosinophils can be considered to be indicators of cryptococcal infection. IFD in children with no other underlying disease has a satisfactory prognosis.


2022 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 58
Author(s):  
Kerri Basile ◽  
Catriona Halliday ◽  
Jen Kok ◽  
Sharon C-A. Chen

Invasive fungal disease (IFD) associated with Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) has focussed predominantly on invasive pulmonary aspergillosis. However, increasingly emergent are non-Aspergillus fungal infections including candidiasis, mucormycosis, pneumocystosis, cryptococcosis, and endemic mycoses. These infections are associated with poor outcomes, and their management is challenged by delayed diagnosis due to similarities of presentation to aspergillosis or to non-specific features in already critically ill patients. There has been a variability in the incidence of different IFDs often related to heterogeneity in patient populations, diagnostic protocols, and definitions used to classify IFD. Here, we summarise and address knowledge gaps related to the epidemiology, risks, diagnosis, and management of COVID-19-associated fungal infections other than aspergillosis.


Hematology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 (1) ◽  
pp. 361-367
Author(s):  
Brian T. Fisher

Abstract Children, adolescents, and young adults receiving intensive chemotherapy for acute myeloid leukemia or high-risk or relapsed acute lymphoblastic leukemia sustain prolonged periods of neutropenia that predispose them to invasive fungal disease (IFD). For many decades the standard of care for these patients was to initiate empirical antifungal therapy after a period of prolonged fever and neutropenia. Recent publications have yielded important evidence on the utility of different diagnostic and therapeutic approaches aimed at reducing the impact of IFD among these patients during these vulnerable periods. This case-based review highlights and interprets the published data to provide context for the IFD diagnostic and therapeutic recommendations proposed in multiple published guidelines. Personalized approaches are offered at points where evidence is lacking. Time points where specific knowledge gaps exist are identified along the clinical trajectory of the prolonged neutropenic period to illustrate areas for future investigation.


2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (12) ◽  
pp. 1046
Author(s):  
Malgorzata Mikulska ◽  
Elisa Balletto ◽  
Elio Castagnola ◽  
Alessandra Mularoni

(1-3)-beta-D-glucan (BDG) is an almost panfungal marker (absent in zygomycetes and most cryptococci), which can be successfully used in screening and diagnostic testing in patients with haematological malignancies if its advantages and limitations are known. The aim of this review is to report the data, particularly from the last 5 years, on the use of BDG in haematological population. Published data report mainly on the performance of the Fungitell™ assay, although several others are currently available, and they vary in method and cut-off of positivity. The sensitivity of BDG for invasive fungal disease (IFD) in haematology patients seems lower than in other populations, possibly because of the type of IFD (lower sensitivity was found in case of aspergillosis compared to candidiasis and pneumocystosis) or the use of prophylaxis. The specificity of the test can be improved by using two consecutive positive assays and avoiding testing in the case of the concomitant presence of factors associated with false positive results. BDG should be used in combination with clinical assessment and other diagnostic tests, both radiological and mycological, to provide maximum information. Good performance of BDG in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) has been reported. BDG is a useful diagnostic method in haematology patients, particularly for pneumocystosis or initial diagnosis of invasive fungal infections.


Pharmaceutics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (12) ◽  
pp. 2099
Author(s):  
Pier Giorgio Cojutti ◽  
Alessia Carnelutti ◽  
Davide Lazzarotto ◽  
Emanuela Sozio ◽  
Anna Candoni ◽  
...  

Isavuconazole is a newer broad-spectrum triazole approved for the treatment of invasive fungal disease. The objective of this study was to conduct a population pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic analysis of isavuconazole in a retrospective cohort of hospitalized patients. A nonlinear mixed-effect approach with Monte Carlo simulations was conducted to assess the probability of target attainment (PTA) of an area under the concentration–time curve (AUC24 h)/minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) ratio of 33.4 (defined as efficacy threshold against A. fumigatus and A. flavus) associated with a maintenance dose (MD) of 100, 200 and 300 mg daily after loading. The cumulative fraction of response (CFR) against the EUCAST MIC distributions of A. fumigatus and A. flavus was calculated as well. The proportion of trough concentrations (Ctrough) exceeding a defined threshold of toxicity (>5.13 mg/L) was estimated. A total of 50 patients, with a median age of 61.5 years, provided 199 plasma isavuconazole concentrations. Invasive pulmonary aspergillosis was the prevalent type of infection and accounted for 80% (40/50) of cases. No clinical covariates were retained by the model. With the standard MD of 200 mg daily, CFRs were always ≥90% during the first two months of treatment. The risk of Ctrough < 1.0 mg/L was around 1%, and that of Ctrough > 5.13 mg/L was 27.7 and 39.2% at 28 and 60 days, respectively, due to isavuconazole accumulation over time. Our findings suggest that TDM for isavuconazole should not be considered as mandatory as for the other mold-active azoles voriconazole and posaconazole.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
B Chow ◽  
M Groeschel ◽  
J Carson ◽  
Thomas Griener ◽  
Deirdre Church

Abstract BackgroundThis study evaluated the performance of a novel fast broad range PCR and sequencing (FBR-PCR/S) assay for the improved diagnosis of invasive fungal disease (IFD) in high-risk patients in a large Canadian healthcare region.MethodsA total of 114 clinical specimens (CS) including bronchoalveolar lavages (BALs) were prospectively tested from 107 patients over a 2-year period. Contrived BALs (n=33) inoculated with known fungi pathogens were also tested to increase diversity. Patient characteristics, fungal stain and culture results were collected from the laboratory information system. Dual-priming oligonucleotide (DPO) primers targeted to the ITS (~350 bp) and LSU (~550 bp) gene regions were used to perform FBR-PCR/S assays on extracted BALs/CS. The performance of the molecular test was evaluated against results of fungal stains and culture, and where available, histopathology, and clinical review for the presence of IFD.ResultsThe 107 patients were predominantly male (67, 62.6%%) with a mean age of 59 yrs. (range = 0 to 85 yrs.): 74 (69.2%) patients had at least one underlying comorbidity: 19 (34.5%) had confirmed and 12 (21.8%) had probable IFD. Culture recovered 66 fungal isolates from 55 BALs/CS with Candida spp. and Aspergillus spp. being most common. For BALs, the molecular assay vs. fungal culture had sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV), and efficiency of 88.5% vs.100%, 100% vs. 61.1%, 100% vs. 88.5%, 61.1% vs. 100%, and 90.2% for both. For other CS, the molecular assay had similar performance to fungal culture with sensitivity, specificity, PPV, NPV and efficiency of 66.7%, 87.0%, 66.7%, 87.0% and 81.3% for both methods. Both methods also performed similarly, regardless of whether CS stain/microscopy showed yeast/fungal elements. FBR-PCR/S assays results were reported in ~8h compared to fungal cultures that took between 4 to 6 weeks.ConclusionsRapid molecular testing compared to culture has equivalent diagnostic efficiency but improves clinical utility by reporting a rapid species-level identification the same dayshift (~8h).


Diagnostics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (11) ◽  
pp. 2057
Author(s):  
Ismaheel O. Lawal ◽  
Kgomotso M. G. Mokoala ◽  
Mankgopo M. Kgatle ◽  
Rudi A. J. O. Dierckx ◽  
Andor W. J. M. Glaudemans ◽  
...  

Invasive fungal disease (IFD) leads to increased mortality, morbidity, and costs of treatment in patients with immunosuppressive conditions. The definitive diagnosis of IFD relies on the isolation of the causative fungal agents through microscopy, culture, or nucleic acid testing in tissue samples obtained from the sites of the disease. Biopsy is not always feasible or safe to be undertaken in immunocompromised hosts at risk of IFD. Noninvasive diagnostic techniques are, therefore, needed for the diagnosis and treatment response assessment of IFD. The available techniques that identify fungal-specific antigens in biological samples for diagnosing IFD have variable sensitivity and specificity. They also have limited utility in response assessment. Imaging has, therefore, been applied for the noninvasive detection of IFD. Morphologic imaging with computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is the most applied technique. These techniques are neither sufficiently sensitive nor specific for the early diagnosis of IFD. Morphologic changes evaluated by CT and MRI occur later in the disease course and during recovery after successful treatment. These modalities may, therefore, not be ideal for early diagnosis and early response to therapy determination. Radionuclide imaging allows for targeting the host response to pathogenic fungi or specific structures of the pathogen itself. This makes radionuclide imaging techniques suitable for the early diagnosis and treatment response assessment of IFD. In this review, we aimed to discuss the interplay of host immunity, immunosuppression, and the occurrence of IFD. We also discuss the currently available radionuclide probes that have been evaluated in preclinical and clinical studies for their ability to detect IFD.


2021 ◽  
Vol 51 (S7) ◽  
pp. 177-219
Author(s):  
Olivia Bupha‐Intr ◽  
Coen Butters ◽  
Gemma Reynolds ◽  
Karina Kennedy ◽  
Wieland Meyer ◽  
...  

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document