Fungemia, Candidemia – Definition, Causes, Symptoms, Treatment

What Is Fungemia?

Fungemia is the presence of fungi in the bloodstream. Fungemia caused by a yeast Candida is called candidemia. Fungemia can cause life threatening infections of internal organs, like heart valves or brain, so it is important to recognize it and treat it promptly.

Symptoms, Risk Factors, Causes

Fungemia should be suspected in a patient with extensive skin burns, lowered immune system (like in AIDS or cancer, including leukemia) or after abdominal surgery, receiving broad-spectrum antibiotics, and having fever, brain fog, itchy skin, non-healing wounds or unusual discharge. Sometimes symptoms may appear weeks or months after invasion of fungi into the blood.

Antibiotics kill bacteria normally present on the skin and in the gut, providing more space for fungi (which are also normally present there in a limited amount), which therefore overgrow. These fungi can invade into the blood through intravenous catheters or from the intestine. Main fungi involved are Candida albicans, Candida glabrata and Aspergillus (1). Fungemia in a person with normal immune system and not receiving antibiotics is not likely (1).

Diagnosis

Fungemia is confirmed by blood culture, but this is often false negative, so it should be repeated if fungemia is still suspected. Blood tests regularly show decreased level of neutrophil leukocytes (a type of white blood cells) – this is called neutropenia.

Treatment

Fungemia should be treated with anti-fungal drugs according to blood culture results.

Related Articles:

• Types of Fungi

References:

1. Treatment of fungemia (mc.vanderbilt.edu)

Article reviewed by Dr. Greg. Last updated on January 11, 2010