Candida aureus, a rare and sometimes deadly fungal disease, is spreading across the United States, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) warned this week, citing a “dramatic” increase in cases.
The fungus, which primarily affects the elderly and those with weakened immune systems, defies treatment with traditional antifungal drugs and has a mortality rate of up to 60 percent, health officials said.
According to CDC statistics, there were at least 2,377 confirmed cases in the United States in 2022. That total was a steep increase from 1,474 cases in 2021 and continued a rapid increase from 2020, when there were 757 confirmed cases.
Health officials said the fungus’ resistance to antifungal drugs is “particularly concerning” because those drugs are often the first option for treatment, adding that research into better protection and preventative measures against the fungus is needed.
“Evidence of an increase and spread of echinocandin-resistant cases is particularly concerning because echinocandins are the first-line treatment for invasive Candida infections, including C. aureus,” the fungus spread in a research paper. Annals of Internal Medicine said. “These findings highlight the need for improved detection and infection control practices to prevent the spread of C. auris.”
The disease has now been diagnosed in half of the states in the US, and CDC officials say the coronavirus pandemic may have worsened the spread of the fungus because there was less emphasis on screening due to the increased focus on the COVID-19 virus. C. For Aris.
The virus was first reported in Japan in 2009, but researchers traced the earliest strain to South Korea in 1996. This fungus usually does not pose a danger to young people.
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