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Frequency of fungi in respiratory samples from Turkish cystic fibrosis patients

Ozge Güngör1, Zeynep Tamay, Nermin Güler

  • 1Department of Microbiology and Clinical Microbiology, Istanbul Medical Faculty, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey.

Mycoses
|July 4, 2012
PubMed

Insights

Fungal infections are increasingly found in cystic fibrosis (CF) patients. This study identified Candida albicans as the most common yeast and Aspergillus fumigatus as the most common mold in Turkish CF patients.

Area of Science:

  • Medical Mycology
  • Infectious Diseases
  • Cystic Fibrosis Research

Background:

  • Increased isolation of fungi from the respiratory tract of cystic fibrosis (CF) patients is a growing concern.
  • The prevalence of specific fungal species in Turkish CF patients remains largely unknown.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To determine the frequency and types of fungal colonization in the respiratory tract of CF patients in Turkey.
  • To investigate potential correlations between fungal presence and bacterial co-infections or patient demographics.

Main Methods:

  • Analysis of 184 respiratory samples from 48 Turkish CF patients.
  • Fungal isolation using Medium B+ and CHROMagar Candida.
  • Identification of yeast and filamentous fungi, alongside bacterial detection.

Main Results:

  • Candida albicans was the predominant yeast (62.5%), followed by C. parapsilosis (12.5%) and C. dubliniensis (10.4%).
  • Aspergillus fumigatus was the most common mold (10.4%), with other Aspergillus species found in 8.3% of patients.
  • Staphylococcus aureus frequently co-occurred with C. albicans (53.57%), and Pseudomonas aeruginosa or S. aureus co-occurred with A. fumigatus (75%).

Conclusions:

  • This study provides the first detailed prevalence data for fungi in Turkish CF patients, highlighting C. albicans and A. fumigatus as key isolates.
  • No significant correlations were found between fungal isolation and age, gender, inhaled corticosteroids, or tobramycin use.
  • Further research is needed to identify other factors contributing to increased fungal isolation in CF patients.

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