Abstract | PURPOSE OF REVIEW: RECENT FINDINGS: Recent clinical trials have documented the clinical efficacy of the echinocandins and the newer triazoles for the management of invasive candidiasis. Thus far, resistance to echinocandins remains rare. Changes in the epidemiology of Candida spp. causing invasive candidiasis, such as an increasing relative proportion of non-albicans Candida spp., have not been universally reported, although they have important implications for the use of fluconazole as first-line therapy for invasive candidiasis. Efforts to improve the timeliness and accuracy of laboratory diagnostic techniques and clinical prediction models to allow early and accurately targeted antifungal intervention strategies continue. SUMMARY:
Echinocandins, given their clinical efficacy, spectrum of activity, and favourable pharmacological properties, are likely to replace fluconazole as initial antifungal agents of choice among critically ill ICU patients. The optimization of patient outcomes will require more accurately targeted early antifungal intervention strategies based upon sensitive and specific biological and clinical markers of risk.
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Authors | Elliott Geoffrey Playford, Philippe Eggimann, Thierry Calandra |
Journal | Current opinion in infectious diseases
(Curr Opin Infect Dis)
Vol. 21
Issue 6
Pg. 610-9
(Dec 2008)
ISSN: 1473-6527 [Electronic] United States |
PMID | 18978529
(Publication Type: Journal Article, Review)
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Chemical References |
- Antifungal Agents
- Echinocandins
- Triazoles
- Fluconazole
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Topics |
- Antifungal Agents
(therapeutic use)
- Candida
(classification, isolation & purification)
- Candidiasis
(diagnosis, drug therapy, epidemiology)
- Critical Illness
- Echinocandins
(therapeutic use)
- Fluconazole
(therapeutic use)
- Humans
- Intensive Care Units
- Triazoles
(therapeutic use)
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