Oral Candida albicans carriage in healthy preschool and school children.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of the present study was to detect Candida albicans carriage in the oral cavity of healthy preschool and school children. The second aim was the determination of correlation between C. albicans occurrence and dental caries in children population.


METHODS
The samples for mycological examinations were collected from the pharynx and supragingival plaque, and carious lesions in 102 children, aged 4-7 years (preschool children) and 104 children and adolescents, aged 12 and 18 (school children). All samples were cultured directly on Sabouraud agar medium. Isolated yeasts were identified based on API 20C AUX (bioMérieux).


RESULTS
A total of 123 C. albicans strains were isolated, in which 61 (49.6%) derived from supragingival plaque, 48 (39%)--from carious lesions, and 14 (11.4%)--from pharyngeal swabs. C. albicans was isolated from the samples of single material in 61 children (35--school children, 26 --preschool children) while from the rest of 29 children, C. albicans was isolated from two (25x) or three materials (4x). C. albicans was detected in 48/75 (64%) children with dental caries; the rate was statistically significantly higher as compared to the overall number of children with C. albicans carriage (90/206; 43.7%) (p = 0.0026). Similar results was obtained in preschool children (38/61; 62.3% and 47/102; 46.1%, respectively) (p = 0.0449), as in school children (10/14; 71.4% and 43/104; 41.3%, respectively) (p = 0.0336).


CONCLUSIONS
1) Candida albicans was observed in the oral cavity of healthy children with high (approximately 40%)--comparable rate in school and preschool children (p > 0.05). 2) C. albicans was isolated with high comparable rate from carious lesions in preschool and school children. The statistically significant differences between the rate of C. albicans in carious lesions in preschool children (62.3%) and school children (71.4%) and the overall number of children with C. albicans carriage in the oral cavity of children in both age groups (p < 0.05) were showed.
Rozkiewicz
D
D
Department of Pediatric Infectious Diseases, Medical University of Białystok, Poland.
Daniluk
T
T
Zaremba
M L
ML
Cylwik-Rokicka
D
D
Stokowska
W
W
Pawińska
M
M
Dabrowska
E
E
Marczuk-Kolada
G
G
Waszkiel
D
D
D000293:Adolescent; D002176:Candida albicans / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D002180:Candidiasis, Oral / Q000175:diagnosis*; D002353:Carrier State / Q000175:diagnosis*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003731:Dental Caries / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009055:Mouth / Q000382:microbiology*; D012306:Risk