Information for Healthcare Professionals about Invasive Candidiasis

Signs and symptoms of invasive candidiasis are often non-specific and include fever and chills that do not respond to antibacterial treatment. Candidemia is the most common form of invasive candidiasis; other forms include endocarditis, peritonitis, meningitis, osteomyelitis, arthritis, and endophthalmitis.

Candida albicans, C. glabrata, C. parapsilosis, C. tropicalis, and C. krusei are most common. Species distribution varies by patient population and geographic region.

Candida is a commensal organism of the gastrointestinal tract and skin.

Most infections arise from the endogenous flora of patients with risk factors following disruption of skin and mucosal barriers. Less commonly, Candida can be transmitted via healthcare workers’ hands or contaminated medical devices.

Invasive candidiasis is primarily diagnosed with blood culture. Newer culture independent diagnostic methods are promising but are not yet widely used. The Beta-D-glucan assay is approved as an adjunctive diagnostic tool but is not a very specific test for Candida. Determining the species of Candida causing the infection is important to guide appropriate antifungal treatment.

For most adult patients with candidemia, an echinocandin is recommended as initial therapy, with transition to fluconazole once the infecting species and antifungal susceptibility are known and blood cultures have cleared. Fluconazole is an acceptable alternative to an echinocandin as initial therapy in selected patients, including those who are not critically ill and who are considered unlikely to have a fluconazole-resistant Candida infection. Alternative treatments include voriconazole and amphotericin B formulations. In general, treatment should continue for two weeks after clearance of Candida from the bloodstream and resolution of symptoms attributable to candidiasis. Intravenous catheter removal is recommended for non-neutropenic patients and can be considered for neutropenic patients. For neonatal candidiasis, the recommended primary treatment is amphotericin B deoxycholate or fluconazole for two weeks after clearance of Candida from the bloodstream and resolution of attributable symptoms.

Treatment recommendations vary for other forms of invasive candidiasis. For detailed treatment guidelines, please refer to the Infectious Diseases Society of America’s Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Management of Candidiasis.

Common risk factors for invasive candidiasis include central venous catheters, use of immunosuppressive agents, use of broad-spectrum antibiotic therapy, renal failure or hemodialysis, and neutropenia.

In healthcare settings, adherence to hand hygiene recommendations and recommendations for placement and maintenance of central venous catheters is important for the prevention of invasive candidiasis.

Some groups of patients may benefit from antifungal prophylaxis:

• Some solid organ transplant recipients
• High-risk ICU patients
• Patients with chemotherapy-induced neutropenia
• Stem cell transplant recipients with neutropenia

For detailed prophylaxis guidelines, please refer to the Infectious Diseases Society of America’s Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Management of Candidiasis.

CDC performs active population-based surveillance for Candida bloodstream infections in Georgia, Maryland, Oregon, and Tennessee. Click here for more information about surveillance and statistics.

• Describing the national burden of candidemia.
• Targeting areas for intervention and prevention strategies
• Further developing laboratory methods to more rapidly diagnose Candida infections and detect antifungal resistance.
• Better understanding of the drivers, mechanisms, and public health burden of antifungal resistant-Candida infections in order to identify the best prevention methods.