Pulmonary aspergillosis is a severe respiratory infection caused by spp., whose resistance profiles and invasive attitude complicate therapeutical strategies. Several aspergillosis cases emerged as superinfections during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic when isavuconazole and amphotericin B became essential antifungal alternatives.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Invasive fungal infections represent a concerning healthcare issue, with spp. reported as the main aetiological agent. spp.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFObjective: Knowledge about voice prosthesis microbial colonization is vital in laryngectomized patients' quality of life (QoL). Herein, we aimed to explore the relationship between oral microbial patterns, demographic variables and voice prosthesis performance.
Methods: Thirty laryngectomy patients were assessed for microbial colonization in their voice prostheses and oral cavities.
Introduction: Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are a prevalent health challenge characterized by the invasion and multiplication of microorganisms in the urinary system. The continuous exploration of novel therapeutic interventions is imperative. Advances in research offer hope for revolutionizing the management of UTIs and improving the overall health outcomes for individuals affected by these infections.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThe skin fungal infection diagnostic workflow currently includes microscopic and culture-based methods as the gold standard. Recent published data described the possible limitations of these conventional techniques documenting the possibility of reducing response time intervals. The present study reports an evaluation of the DermaGenius® (DG) multiplex kit (PathoNostics) for rapid C.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFungemia is a co-infection contributing to the worsening of the critically ill COVID-19 patient. The multicenter Italian observational study FiCoV aims to estimate the frequency of yeast bloodstream infections (BSIs), to describe the factors associated with yeast BSIs in COVID-19 patients hospitalized in 10 hospitals, and to analyze the antifungal susceptibility profiles of the yeasts isolated from blood cultures. The study included all hospitalized adult COVID-19 patients with a yeast BSI; anonymous data was collected from each patient and data about antifungal susceptibility was collected.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIsavuconazole is a new broad-spectrum triazole, with significant in vitro activity against yeasts. Isavuconazole in vitro susceptibility can be evaluated through broth microdilution as a reference method. Considering difficulties in equipping such methods in a laboratory routine, a commercial MIC Strip test has been designed.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFFungal diseases correlated to beach sand or water have not yet been demonstrated due to the lack of epidemiological studies. This study aims to illustrate the fungal population in beach sands of the two largest Italian lakes and in sands and waters of Mediterranean coasts of Southern Italy to contribute to the identification and assessment of causes of microbiological pollution that might impair bathers health. A great difference was observed between the two lakes, where the total of colony-forming units (CFU) ranged from 33.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIn this study the activity of Isavuconazole, Voriconazole, Amphotericin B, and Caspofungin against 224 clinical isolates of spp. originating from seven Italian hospitals, was comparatively evaluated with two commercial antifungal susceptibility tests (AST): Sensititre YeastOne (SYO) and MIC Test Strip. More attention was focused on Isavuconazole activity, given the new introduction of the drug in widely distributed antifungal susceptibilities methods in the clinical microbiology lab.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDiabetes is characterized by an increased rate of serum glucose due to defects in insulin secretion, insulin action or both conditions. Glucose excesses can lead to extended cellular damage, with the consequence of several infectious and non-infectious skin disorders. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the toenail onychomycosis incidence in diabetic patients and healthy ones.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBackground: Onychomycosis is a nail fungal infection mainly caused by dermatophytes. Diagnostic confirmation is conventionally made by direct microscopy and culture, which suffer from low or moderate sensitivity. Several molecular methods have been used for dermatophytes detection and identification directly from nail samples.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInvasive candidiasis is known to be one of the most common healthcare-associated complications and is caused by several species. First-line drugs, particularly echinocandins, are effective, but there are increasing reports of resistance to these molecules, though rarely related to . Even though the rate of echinocandins resistance remains low (<3%), sporadic cases are emerging.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFis a filamentous fungus commonly found in the environment and is the major cause of fungal keratitis. We report a case of keratomycosis caused by in a patient using disposable soft contact lenses. A delay in diagnosis led to the initiation of an empirical antifungal treatment with the subsequent deterioration of the patient's clinical condition.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInvasive pulmonary aspergillosis, known as a complication in patients with severe respiratory syndromes, recently showed a correlation with COVID-19 pneumonia, and the clinical characteristics of COVID-19 associated pulmonary aspergillosis (CAPA) have been described. Unfortunately, infections by the genus are often diagnosed in time, because of diagnostic delays and a rapid worsening of respiratory conditions. Literature data document, in fact, only few cases of COVID-19 coinfection.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInvasive candidiasis remains one of the most prevalent systemic mycoses, and several studies have documented the presence of mixed yeast (MY) infections. Here, we describe the epidemiology, clinical, and microbiological characteristics of MY infections causing invasive candidiasis in a multicenter prospective study. Thirty-four centers from 14 countries participated.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFRecent evidence has demonstrated that salivary molecules, as well as bacterial populations, can be perturbed by several pathological conditions, including neuro-psychiatric diseases. This relationship between brain functionality and saliva composition could be exploited to unveil new pathological mechanisms of elusive diseases, such as Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD). We performed a combined approach of miRNA expression profiling by NanoString technology, followed by validation experiments in qPCR, and 16S rRNA microbiome analysis on saliva from 53 ASD and 27 neurologically unaffected control (NUC) children.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFBB536 and HN001 are two strains frequently used as probiotic components in food supplements. The decrease of potentially pathogenic gastrointestinal microorganisms is one of their claimed mechanisms. The aim of this study was to investigate their ability, alone or in combination, to inhibit the growth of Gram-negative, Gram-positive and reference strains and clinical isolates, using different methods.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFThis study investigated the presence of and species complex isolates on olive trees growing in the Eastern part of Sicily (Italy) characterized by the presence of the volcano Etna and the ability of these fungal pathogens to sexually reproduce on medium containing volcanic soil. Samples from 124 olive trees were collected from 14 different sites around Mount Etna. Eighteen trees (14.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFis an anthropophilic dermatophyte causing several clinical variants of tinea capitis including the Kerion celsi that can be often unrecognised or confused with other lesions. We report a case of Kerion celsi caused by in a child following an excoriation to the scalp caused by a fall in a public park. The use of multiplex PCR assay has enabled rapid diagnosis of tinea capitis from with a result in less than 48 hours and therefore the possibility of quickly starting antifungal therapy.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFA total of 476 European isolates (310 Cryptococcus neoformans var. grubii, 150 C. neoformans var.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Microbiol Immunol Infect
October 2020
Background: The diagnosis of Invasive Candidiasis (IC) presents serious problems, mainly associated with the absence of pathognomonic symptoms of the disease and the difficulty of isolating the fungus in blood culture. Candida albicans germ tube antibody (CAGTA) provides a rapid and simple test for diagnosis of IC. The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic role of the CAGTA in the monitoring of critically-ill patients at risk of developing IC.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Fungi (Basel)
December 2018
Azole resistance in spp. has been increasingly reported worldwide. Acquired azole resistance is probably linked to environmental exposure to fungicides used in agriculture.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFMed Mycol Case Rep
December 2018
Several cases have been reported of infections in immunocompromised patients. Acute leukemia is the main predisposing factor. Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is not usually associated with opportunistic infections.
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