For years, public health experts have warned about the dangers of antibiotic-resistant bacteria, but now there is increasing concern over highly contagious — and treatment-resistant — fungal infections.
The World Health Organization (WHO) issued a warning just this month about the rise in Candida auris cases. This particular fungal infection was only first recognized in 2009 but has quickly achieved a worldwide presence. C. auris is one of the specific invasive fungal diseases (IFD) on the radar of public health experts, particularly because of how easily this fungi lives and spreads in hospitals, long-term care facilities and other healthcare settings.
WHO, which last year created a priority list of fungi that poses the greatest emerging threat to public health, also warns that, despite the increase in cases of these fungal infections, global health systems are not well-prepared or equipped to treat people infected with these organisms. In fact, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has urged health authorities to improve detection and treatment methods for these infections, especially in vulnerable populations.
People who are immunocompromised are at greater risk of being infected with C. auris and similar fungal infections, according to public health experts.
Part of the problem, CDC says, is that fungal infections like C. auris aren’t detected on many standard tests. To make matters worse, some types of Candida infections have been found to be resistant to all three major classes of antifungal medications.
New antifungal medications and even vaccines are being researched to help prevent these infections, but public health experts urge vigilant surveillance and response plans at all healthcare facilities. The CDC suggests that every healthcare facility has a plan to identify and manage Candida infections in order to prevent large-scale outbreaks.
