title: Clinical significance of the isolation of Candida species from hospitalized patients.
abstract: In this study, we isolated and phenotypically identified 108 yeast strains from various clinical specimens collected from 100 hospitalized patients at three tertiary hospitals in São Luís-Maranhão, Brazil, from July to December 2010. The isolates were analyzed for their susceptibility to four of the most widely used antifungal agents in the surveyed hospitals, amphotericin B, fluconazole, 5-flucytosine and voriconazole. The species identified were Candida albicans (41.4%), Candida tropicalis (30.1%), C. glabrata (7.4%), Candida parapsilosis (5.5%), Candida krusei (4.6%), Cryptococcus neoformans (4.6%), Trichosporon spp . (3.7%), Candida norvegensis (0.9%), Rhodotorula glutinis (0.9%) and Pichia farinosa (0.9%). A higher isolation rate was observed in the following clinical specimens: urine (54 isolates; 50%), respiratory tract samples (21 isolates; 19.4%) and blood (20 isolates; 18.6%). Candida albicans isolates were 100% sensitive to all antifungal agents tested, whereas Candida krusei and Crytococcus neoformans displayed intermediate resistance to 5-flucytosine, with Minimal Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) values of 8 mg/mL and 16 mg/mL, respectively. Both strains were also S-DD to fluconazole with an MIC of 16 mg/mL. C. tropicalis was resistant to 5-flucytosine with an MIC of 32 μg/mL. This study demonstrates the importance of identifying the yeast species involved in community and nosocomial infections.
authors.affiliation: Laboratório Cedro, São Luis, MA, Brazil.
authors.forename: Yankee C
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Magalhães
authors.affiliation: Universidade CEUMA, São Luis, MA, Brazil.
authors.forename: Maria Rosa Q
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Bomfim
authors.affiliation: Laboratório Cedro, São Luis, MA, Brazil.
authors.forename: Luciane C
authors.initials: LC
authors.lastname: Melônio
authors.affiliation: Laboratório Cedro, São Luis, MA, Brazil. ; Universidade CEUMA, São Luis, MA, Brazil. ; Hospital Universitário, Universidade Federal do Maranhão, São Luis, MA, Brazil.
authors.forename: Patrícia C S
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Ribeiro
authors.affiliation: Laboratório Cedro, São Luis, MA, Brazil. ; Laboratório Central de Saúde Pública do Maranhão, São Luis, MA, Brazil.
authors.forename: Lécia M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Cosme
authors.affiliation: Laboratório Cedro, São Luis, MA, Brazil.
authors.forename: Cristianne R
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Rhoden
authors.affiliation: Laboratório Cedro, São Luis, MA, Brazil. ; Universidade CEUMA, São Luis, MA, Brazil. ; Hospital Universitário, Universidade Federal do Maranhão, São Luis, MA, Brazil.
authors.forename: Sirlei G
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Marques
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000935:Antifungal Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D001938:Brazil; D002175:Candida / Q000187:drug effects / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008826:Microbial Sensitivity Tests; D008875:Middle Aged; D009181:Mycoses / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology*; D010843:Pichia / Q000187:drug effects / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D015995:Prevalence; D012248:Rhodotorula / Q000187:drug effects / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D062606:Tertiary Care Centers; D014250:Trichosporon / Q000187:drug effects / Q000302:isolation & purification*
chemical_list: D000935:Antifungal Agents
keywords: fungal infections; nosocomial infections; susceptibility profile