title: Clinical characteristics, treatment and prognostic factors of candidal meningitis in a teaching hospital in Taiwan.
abstract: The prognostic factors of candidal meningitis had rarely been studied owing to the rarity of this disease. We identified 17 patients with candidal meningitis at a teaching hospital in Taiwan over a 14-y period and give details of the clinical features, treatment, outcome and prognostic factors of this disease. 10 patients were children (1 was neonate) and 7 were adults. The clinical features and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) findings were non-specific. The disease was diagnosed > 72 h after hospitalization in 14 (82%) patients. The most frequently isolated species was Candida albicans (65%). Regimens of therapy included intravenous amphotericin B deoxycholate (AmB) or fluconazole alone, or a combination of intravenous AmB with intrathecal AmB, flucytosine or fluconazole. All indwelling central nervous system devices were externalized or removed. Four adults died of the disease. Three of them had malignancy and had received < 48 h of antifungal therapy. For adult patients with malignancy, early diagnosis and alternative treatment modalities with newer antifungal agents may be needed.
authors.affiliation: Section of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, Republic of China.
authors.forename: Te-Li
authors.initials: TL
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Hsin-Pai
authors.initials: HP
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Chang-Phone
authors.initials: CP
authors.lastname: Fung
authors.forename: Ming-Ying
authors.initials: MY
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Kwok-Woon
authors.initials: KW
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.forename: Cheng-Yi
authors.initials: CY
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D017677:Age Distribution; D000368:Aged; D000935:Antifungal Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002177:Candidiasis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D006784:Hospitals, Teaching; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D016921:Meningitis, Fungal / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology*; D011336:Probability; D011379:Prognosis; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D017678:Sex Distribution; D016019:Survival Analysis; D013624:Taiwan / Q000453:epidemiology; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D000935:Antifungal Agents