S10.4d A unique clinical appearance of Candida auris infection in Japan

Abstract

S10.4 Emerging antifungal resistant fungi, September 24, 2022, 10:30 AM - 12:00 PMIt has only been 15 years since Candida auris was reported isolated from the ear canal of a 70-year-old Japanese woman in Tokyo, and no record of an isolate corresponding to this species has been found prior to 1996. It is a high public health priority concern in several regions of the world. This is because the fungus is multidrug-resistant and can acquire resistance to all three major groups of current antifungal drugs (azoles, echinocandins, and amphotericin B). Outbreaks in healthcare facilities are also a concern. The main reasons for this are as follows: unlike other Candida spp. that primarily inhabit the digestive and urinary systems, C. auris readily colonizes patient skin and can survive for several weeks on dry, non-living surfaces, contributing to infections and outbreaks in healthcare facilities.In Japan, C. auris was first identified in 2009 in a discharge from the ear canal of a patient admitted to a Japanese hospital, and since then, all isolates have come from the ear canal, with only a few reported strains. For reasons unknown, as of 2022, C. auris has not been reported as a cause of invasive disease in Japan, and no nosocomial infections have occurred. Whole genome analysis suggests that all Japanese isolates belong to Clade II, affecting drug resistance and clinical characteristics.In this symposium, I will present the current status of C. auris infection in Japan, the first country where C. auris infection originated, together with its unique clinical features and molecular epidemiological analysis.