Prevalence of fungal infections in a tertiary care centre: A retrospective study

Abstract

Back ground: During recent years, fungal infections have risen exponentially and are a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in hospitalised patients. Fungal infections are commonly observed in patients with uncontrolled diabetes mellitus, organ transplant, use of invasive devices and broad spectrum antimicrobial agents. Objective: A retrospective analysis for a period of one year was undertaken to know the prevalence of common fungal infections in a tertiary care hospital. Materials and Methods: Clinical samples collected from patients presenting with clinically suspected fungal infections were received in the microbiology laboratory attached to the Medical College Hospital, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India. Direct microscopy with 10% potassium hydroxide was done to visualize the presence of fungal elements, and Gram staining was done for any suspected yeast infection. India ink stain was done for cerebrospinal fluid. The samples were inoculated on Sabouraud's Dextrose Agar and kept at 22°C and 37°C. Results: A total of 366 samples with suspected fungal aetiology were included in the study. The isolates were maximum in adults (66.66%). Females (54.5%) were more affected than males (45.5%). There were 81 isolates of which one was yeast, 28 were yeast-like fungi, and 52 were mould fungi. Non-albicans Candida (32.09%) and Aspergillus flavus (20.98%) were the predominant fungal isolates. Conclusion: The predominant isolate obtained in this study was non-albicans Candida. Among moulds, aspergillus species was the most common isolate. An increase in fungal infections may be due to an increase in the number of AIDS patients in our hospital.