[Systemic candidiasis in the severely burned patient (author's transl)]

As a result of progress in the modern treatment of burns, systemic candidosis (CA), in the sense of "surviving mycoses", has become increasingly frequent. The site of entry is not usually the wound, but the intestinal tract, which becomes overgrown by the yeasts as a consequence of the requisite therapy with antibacterial antibiotics in high dosage. Passage of the organism into the circulation occurs by persorption. In view of the bad prognosis of systemic CA, it is essential to recognize its incipient development and counteract by timely prophylactic measures, primarily sterilization of the intestine. In a developed case os systemic CA, the chances of cure improve with rapidity of recognition of the infection and initiation of treatment. Early diagnosis of the infection is achieved by the regular quantitative determination of the organism in the faeces, in urine and blood, as well as in swabs of mucous membranes and the wounds and, above all, by serological examination (movement of titre). The practical problems of the disease are demonstrated and discussed on the basis of 2 cases treated in this department.