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VIDEO: C. auris ‘in the category of a superbug’
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SAN DIEGO — In 2016, the CDC warned clinicians in the United States about Candida auris, an emerging and often drug-resistant fungus with a high potential to cause hospital outbreaks. Distinct from other Candida spp., C. auris spreads from patient to patient or from surface to patient in health care settings.
As of Aug. 31, 153 clinical cases of C. auris were reported in 10 U.S. states, mostly in New York and New Jersey, according to the CDC. In addition, targeted screening detected almost as many patients who are colonized with C. auris.
In this video from IDWeek, Tom M. Chiller, MD, MPHTM, chief of the CDC’s Mycotic Diseases Branch, discusses the clinical implications of C. auris and the CDC’s updated clinical guidance.
“This is really the first Candida species that we have seen that can develop resistance to all three antifungal classes,” Chiller said. “That is, obviously, in the category of a superbug. We don’t want a fungal superbug, but we may have one on our hands.”
Disclosure: Chiller reports no relevant financial disclosures.