Confronting and mitigating the risk of COVID-19 associated pulmonary aspergillosis. Issue 4 (1st October 2020)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Armstrong-James, Darius; Youngs, Jonathan; Bicanic, Tihana; Abdolrasouli, Alireza; Denning, David W.; Johnson, Elizabeth; Mehra, Varun; Pagliuca, Tony; Patel, Brijesh; Rhodes, Johanna; Schelenz, Silke; Shah, Anand; van de Veerdonk, Frank L.; Verweij, Paul E.; White, P. Lewis; Fisher, Matthew C.
• Is Part Of: European respiratory journal. Volume 56:Issue 4(2020)
• Publication Date: 2020-10-01
• Subjects: Respiratory organs -- Diseases -- Periodicals; Respiration -- Periodicals; 616.2
• DOI: 10.1183/13993003.02554-2020
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0903-1936

Abstract

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) virus caused a wide spectrum of disease in healthy individuals, as well as those with common comorbidities [1]. Severe COVID-19 is characterised by acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) secondary to viral pneumonitis, treatment of which may require mechanical ventilation or extracorporeal membrane oxygenation [2]. Clinicians are alert to the possibility of bacterial co-infection as a complication of lower respiratory tract viral infection; for example, a recent review found that 72% of patients with COVID-19 received antimicrobial therapy [3]. However, the risk of fungal co-infection, in particular COVID-19 associated pulmonary aspergillosis (CAPA), remains underappreciated. Cases of COVID-19 associated pulmonary aspergillosis (CAPA) are being increasingly reported and physicians treating patients with COVID-19-related lung disease need to actively consider these fungal co-infections https://bit.ly/3feuGsQ