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Published on: July 1, 2020
Risk factors for candidemia in pediatric intensive care unit patients
Hasan Ağın1, Ilker Devrim, Rana Işgüder
1Department of Intensıve Care, Dr. Behcet Uz Children's Hospital, Izmir, Turkey.
Insights
Longer stays in the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU), mechanical ventilation, central venous catheters, and total parenteral nutrition increase the risk of developing Candida infections. Further research is needed for clinical prevention strategies.
Area of Science:
- Infectious Diseases
- Pediatric Critical Care
- Mycology
Background:
- Candida infections pose a significant threat in pediatric intensive care units (PICUs).
- Identifying risk factors is crucial for timely intervention and prevention of candidemia.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the risk factors associated with the development of Candida infections in critically ill children.
- To identify key clinical indicators for candidemia in the PICU setting.
Main Methods:
- A case-control study was conducted involving patients admitted to the PICU.
- Data were collected from March 2010 to March 2011, comparing patients with candidemia to a control group.
Main Results:
- Candida albicans was the most frequent species isolated, followed by C. parapsilosis.
- Patients with candidemia had significantly longer PICU stays (22.0 days vs. 13.5 days).
- Mechanical ventilation, central venous catheter use, and total parenteral nutrition were more prevalent in patients with candidemia.
Conclusions:
- Prolonged PICU hospitalization, mechanical ventilation, central venous catheters, and total parenteral nutrition are significant risk factors for candidemia.
- While predictive models exist, further studies are necessary to develop practical clinical tools for candidemia prevention in PICUs.
Objective:
To determine the risk factors for developing candida infections in pediatric intensive care unit (PICU).
Methods:
The present study was conducted as a case-control study and included the population of patients who were admitted to PICU during the period of March 2010-March 2011.
Results:
During the study period, a total of 57 patients in PICU had candidemia, 4 cases were excluded due to their PICU stay less than 48 h and one due to the insufficient data. The most commonly isolated Candida species was C. albicans, followed by C. parapsilosis. The median duration of hospitalization in PICU was higher (22.0 d) in candidemia patients compared to control group (13.5 d) (p = 0.037). The patients with candidemia had higher rates of presence of mechanical ventilation, presence of central venous catheter, and being under total parenteral nutrition; compared to the control group.
Conclusions:
The longer PICU durations, mechanical ventilation, central venous catheter, total parenteral nutrition were the associated factors. Although trials for predicitive models or scoring systems for development of candidemia have been performed; more future studies were required for practical usage in clinics settings in order to prevent candidemia.
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