Deadly fungal infection spreading rapidly through US, warns CDC
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A lethal fungal infection has been spreading across parts of the United States, according to CDC researchers.
The infections are said to be spreading quickly through US healthcare facilities. According to the new study, the cases have been detected in more than half of the United States.
Worryingly, the fungus is becoming resistant to the available antibiotics used to treat the infection.
The identified fungus infection
Candida auris causes the infection, which can be found on the skin or throughout the body. The infection spreads through contact with infected surfaces or person-to-person transmission.
Its first cases were reported in Japan in 2009, while the cases were detected in the US in 2013.
The most recent findings, published in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine, indicate that cases in the United States have increased in recent years.
In 2021, approximately 1,471 cases of C. auris were reported, representing a 95% increase over the previous year. In previous years, the following cases were reported: 756 (the year 2020), 476 (2019), 330 (2018), and 173 (2017).
According to the latest CDC data tracking cases, about 2,377 clinical cases were detected in 2022. This figure, however, was not examined in the study.
However, how many people have died due to the infection is unknown. According to the CDC, 30 percent and 60 percent of people infected with C. auris die.
The infection is said to be harmless to healthy people. However, it can be dangerous to people who have weakened immune systems.
According to experts, screening symptomless patients is critical to preventing them from spreading to those at risk, particularly in hospitals and care facilities.
Resistant to antifungal drugs
Surveillance data has revealed a few cases of drug resistance—specifically, a class of antifungal drugs known as echinocandins, used as first-line therapy.
According to the CDC study, the rise in fungal infections may be partly due to the COVID-19 pandemic, when healthcare systems were severely taxed. As a result, some gaps in effective infection control measures may have existed. For instance, checking multiple patients with the same gowns or gloves.
The doctors emphasize that the most difficult challenge is keeping the fungus away from patients in hospital intensive care units.
Immediate infection control measures, as well as practicing good hand hygiene, isolating patients, and keeping the environment clean, must be implemented. Moreover, early detection is critical to limiting transmission.
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