Yeast in blood cultures. Evaluation of factors influencing outcome

Sixty episodes of candidemia occurring between January 1987 and September 1989 were retrospectively reviewed and the outcome was compared for three patient categories: neutropenic, postsurgical, and nonneutropenic nonsurgical. Because of increasing reports of resistant yeasts, minimal inhibitory concentrations (MICs) to amphotericin B (amB) were determined to examine its relationship to patient outcome. No significant differences between patient categories were found for selected risk factors, mortality, or species isolated, although there was a tendency for Candida tropicalis to occur in neutropenic patients. Statistical analysis using logistic regression showed that both an amB dose greater than 500 mg and a yeast MIC greater than 0.78 micrograms/ml were independent prognosticators of patient outcome.