Association of chronic Candida albicans respiratory infection with a more severe lung disease in patients with cystic fibrosis. Issue 11 (18th September 2015)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Gileles‐Hillel, Alex; Shoseyov, David; Polacheck, Itzhack; Korem, Maya; Kerem, Eitan; Cohen‐Cymberknoh, Malena
• Is Part Of: Pediatric pulmonology. Volume 50:Issue 11(2015:Nov.)
• Page Start: 1082
• Page End: 1089
• Publication Date: 2015-09-18
• Subjects: Pediatric respiratory diseases -- Periodicals; Pediatrics -- Periodicals; 618.922
• DOI: 10.1002/ppul.23302
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 8755-6863

Abstract

<abstract abstract-type="main" xml:lang="en"> <title>Summary</title> <sec id="ppul23302-sec-0001" sec-type="section"> <title>Background</title> <p>Despite the increase in fungal isolates, the significance of chronic <italic>Candida albicans</italic> airway colonization in CF is unclear.</p> </sec> <sec id="ppul23302-sec-0002" sec-type="section"> <title>Aim</title> <p>To investigate the impact of <italic>C. albicans</italic> airway colonization on CF disease severity.</p> </sec> <sec id="ppul23302-sec-0003" sec-type="section"> <title>Methods</title> <p>Longitudinal analysis of clinical data from CF patients followed during 2003–2009 at our CF center. Patients were stratified based on their <italic>C. albicans</italic> colonization status – chronic, intermittent, and none.</p> </sec> <sec id="ppul23302-sec-0004" sec-type="section"> <title>Results</title> <p>A total of 4, 244 cultures were obtained from 91 patients (mean age 19.7 years, range 5–68). The three colonization groups were similar in age, gender, and body mass index (BMI). Compared to the non‐colonized group (n = 27, 30%), the chronic <italic>C. albicans</italic> colonization group (n = 34, 37%), had a significantly lower FEV<sub>1</sub> percent predicted (74.3 ± 23.1% vs. 93.9% ± 22.2) with a higher annual rate of FEV<sub>1</sub> decline (− 1.9 ± 4.2% vs. 0.7 ± 4.5%). The patients who were intermittently colonized with <italic>C. albicans</italic> had intermediate values.</p> </sec> <sec id="ppul23302-sec-0005" sec-type="section"> <title>Conclusions</title> <p>Chronic respiratory colonization of <italic>C. albicans</italic> is associated with worsening of FEV<sub>1</sub> in CF. Prospective studies are needed to confirm this finding and to corroborate whether indeed <italic>C. albicans</italic> drives a deleterious lung phenotype. <bold>Pediatr Pulmonol. 2015; 50:1082–1089.</bold> © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.</p> </sec> </abstract>