Is routine screening for Candida auris necessary in ICU?

Arun  Sachu; Harisree  Sudersanan; Sanjo  Sunny; Philip  Mathew; Ajeesh  Kumar; Alice  David

doi:10.18502/ijm.v16i5.16807

Arun Sachu Department of Micobiology, Believers Church Medical College, Thiruvalla, Kerala, India
Harisree Sudersanan Department of Microbiology, Government TD Medical College, Alappuzha, Kerala, India
Sanjo Sunny Department of Critical Care, Believers Church Medical College, Thiruvalla, Kerala, India
Philip Mathew Department of Critical Care, Believers Church Medical College, Thiruvalla, Kerala, India
Ajeesh Kumar Department of Critical Care, Believers Church Medical College, Thiruvalla, Kerala, India
Alice David Head of Medical Research, Believers Church Medical College, Thiruvalla, Kerala, India

DOI: https://doi.org/10.18502/ijm.v16i5.16807

Keywords: Screening; Candida; Colonization; Infection; Resistant

Abstract

Background and Objectives: The capability to cause invasive infection, multi-drug resistance, and health care-associated outbreaks of Candida auris have made it a pathogen of great concern. Estimating how many patients in our intensive care unit had C. auris colonization and what characteristics put patients at risk for having Candida spp. colonization were the primary goals of the study.

Materials and Methods: Swabs from axilla and groin were collected from 229 patients getting admitted to the ICU. Sam- ples were inoculated into CHROMagarTM Candida Plus medium. Colonies presumptively identified as C. auris by the pres- ence of light blue with blue halo and were confirmed by VITEK-2.

Results: Our study showed that only one patient was colonized with C. auris. A total of 47 (20.5%) patients were colonized with Candida spp., of which Candida parapislosis was the predominant organism. History of antibiotic use and cerebrovas- cular accident were independent risk factors in Candida colonization.

Conclusion: Active screening for Candida auris in all patients is not required in our hospital as the prevalence was very low and not cost-effective. Therefore we plan to modify our screening strategy and use risk factors based surveillance strategy as it may serve as an ideal strategy.