title: Treatment of gastric candidiasis in patients with gastric ulcer disease: are antifungal agents necessary?
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The inadequacy of information on the treatment of gastric candidiasis with antifungal agents promoted us to evaluate patients with fungal infections who had gastric ulcers and assess the need for proton-pump inhibitors or antifungal agents.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sixteen patients were included in the study. The criterion for the diagnosis of candidiasis was finding yeast and hyphae in the tissue or an ulcer on histological sections of biopsy samples. Surface fungi were not considered infections.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In all cases with benign ulcers, follow-up endoscopy performed 6 weeks after proton-pump-inhibitor treatment revealed that the ulcer had improved without antifungal medication. However, in patients with malignant ulcers, surgical resection was necessary for a definitive cure. Two patients with lymphoma received combined chemotherapy and a proton-pump inhibitor, which improved their condition.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The results of this study suggest that benign ulcers with candidiasis can be effectively treated by a proton-pump inhibitor without antifungal medication. However, surgical resection should be considered for malignant ulcers with candidiasis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Kyungpook National University Hospital, Daegu, Korea.
authors.forename: Min Kyu
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Jung
authors.forename: Seong Woo
authors.initials: SW
authors.lastname: Jeon
authors.forename: Chang Min
authors.initials: CM
authors.lastname: Cho
authors.forename: Won Young
authors.initials: WY
authors.lastname: Tak
authors.forename: Young Oh
authors.initials: YO
authors.lastname: Kweon
authors.forename: Sung Kook
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Yong Hwan
authors.initials: YH
authors.lastname: Choi