Distribution and susceptibility to amphotericin B and fluconazole of Candida spp. isolated from Taiwan

Epidemiol Infect. 2005 Apr;133(2):325-30. doi: 10.1017/s0950268804003310.

Abstract

Susceptibilities to amphotericin B and fluconazole of 628 clinical yeast strains collected from 22 hospitals in Taiwan were determined. A total of 53 isolates (8.4%) were resistant to fluconazole. Each hospital had different resistance rate to fluconazole ranging from 0% to 24%. None of the 186 isolates from eight of the 22 hospitals was resistant to fluconazole. In contrast, isolates from nine of the remaining 14 hospitals had greater than 10% resistance rate to fluconazole. Consistently, 88.9% (8/9) fluconazole-resistant C. albicans isolates were from hospitals having a high resistance rate to fluconazole. The prevalence of various Candida spp. in each hospital was different. A positive association was found between the prevalence of C. tropicalis and the resistance rate to fluconazole for individual hospitals. Although only three isolates (0.5%) were resistant to amphotericin B, a co-resistance to both amphotericin B and fluconazole was observed, which highlights the emerging problem of drug resistance.

MeSH terms

  • Amphotericin B / pharmacology*
  • Antifungal Agents / pharmacology*
  • Candida / drug effects*
  • Candida / pathogenicity
  • Candida tropicalis / drug effects
  • Candida tropicalis / pathogenicity
  • Candidiasis / drug therapy
  • Candidiasis / epidemiology*
  • Drug Resistance, Microbial
  • Fluconazole / pharmacology*
  • Hospitals / statistics & numerical data
  • Humans
  • Microbial Sensitivity Tests
  • Prevalence
  • Taiwan / epidemiology

Substances

  • Antifungal Agents
  • Amphotericin B
  • Fluconazole