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. 2015 Mar 30;10(3):e0120452.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0120452. eCollection 2015.

Declining incidence of candidemia and the shifting epidemiology of Candida resistance in two US metropolitan areas, 2008-2013: results from population-based surveillance

Angela Ahlquist Cleveland  1 , Lee H Harrison  2 , Monica M Farley  3 , Rosemary Hollick  2 , Betsy Stein  3 , Tom M Chiller  1 , Shawn R Lockhart  1 , Benjamin J Park  1
Affiliations

Declining incidence of candidemia and the shifting epidemiology of Candida resistance in two US metropolitan areas, 2008-2013: results from population-based surveillance

Angela Ahlquist Cleveland et al. PLoS One. .

Abstract

Background: Recent reports have demonstrated a decline in bacterial bloodstream infections (BSIs) following adherence to central line insertion practices; however, declines have been less evident for BSIs due to Candida species.

Methods: We conducted active, population-based laboratory surveillance for candidemia in metropolitan Atlanta, GA and Baltimore, MD over a 5-year period. We calculated annual candidemia incidence and antifungal drug resistance rates.

Results: We identified 3,848 candidemia cases from 2008-2013. Compared with 2008, candidemia incidence per 100,000 person-years decreased significantly by 2013 in both locations (GA: 14.1 to 9.5, p<0.001; MD: 30.9 to 14.4, p<0.001). A total of 3,255 cases (85%) had a central venous catheter (CVC) in place within 2 days before the BSI culture date. In both locations, the number of CVC-associated cases declined (GA: 473 to 294; MD: 384 to 151). Candida albicans (CA, 36%) and Candida glabrata (CG, 27%) were the most common species recovered. In both locations, the proportion of cases with fluconazole resistance decreased (GA: 8.0% to 7.1%, -10%; MD: 6.6% to 4.9%, -25%), while the proportion of cases with an isolate resistant to an echinocandin increased (GA: 1.2% to 2.9%, +147%; MD: 2.0% to 3.5%, +77%). Most (74%) echinocandin-resistant isolates were CG; 17 (<1%) isolates were resistant to both drug categories (multidrug resistant [MDR], 16/17 were CG). The proportion of CG cases with MDR Candida increased from 1.8% to 2.6%.

Conclusions: We observed a significant decline in the incidence of candidemia over a five-year period, and increases in echinocandin-resistant and MDR Candida. Efforts to strengthen infection control practices may be preventing candidemia among high-risk patients. Further surveillance for resistant Candida is warranted.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1. Annual candidemia incidence rates per 100,000 person-years, by year and location, 2008–2013.
Fig 2
Fig 2. Annual candidemia incidence rates per 100,000 person-years, by year and age-group in the Metropolitan Baltimore area.
Fig 3
Fig 3. Annual candidemia incidence rates per 100,000 person-years, by year and age-group in the Metropolitan Atlanta area.
Fig 4
Fig 4. Changes in candidemia case count at participating hospitals over the five-year study period (2008–2013), by the total number of cases each hospital contributed during the study.
Fig 5
Fig 5. Candidemia cases that had a CVC compared with cases that had no CVC, in Atlanta (ATL) and Baltimore (BTM), 2008–2013.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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