All You Need to Know and More about the Diagnosis and Management of Rare Mold Infections

Abstract

Invasive mold infections caused by molds other than Aspergillus spp. or Mucorales are emerging. The reported prevalences of infection due to these rare fungal pathogens vary among geographic regions, driven by differences in climatic conditions, susceptible hosts, and diagnostic capabilities. These rare molds-Fusarium, Lomentospora, and Scedosporium species and others-are difficult to detect and often show intrinsic antifungal resistance. Now, international societies of medical mycology and microbiology have joined forces and created the "Global guideline for the diagnosis and management of rare mould infections: an initiative of the European Confederation of Medical Mycology in cooperation with the International Society for Human and Animal Mycology and the American Society for Microbiology" (published in Lancet Infect Dis, https://doi.org/10.1016/S1473-3099(20)30784-2), with the goal of improving the diagnosis, treatment, prevention, and survival of persons with rare mold infections. The guideline provides cutting-edge guidance for the correct utilization and application of established and new diagnostic and therapeutic options.

Keywords: Fusarium; Lomentospora; Paecilomyces; Penicillium; Phaeohyphomycosis; Rasamsonia; Scedosporium; Scopulariopsis; basidiomycetes; diagnosis; molds; treatment.