An influential US medical body is warning of the dangers of a fast-spreading deadly fungus just a week after the end of popular zombie show The Last of Us.
The American College of Physicians (ACAP) said the emergence and spread of antibiotic-resistant cases of Candida auris, also known as cauris, is “of particular concern.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) described the fungus, which infects up to 60 percent of people, as an “urgent threat” in 2019.
A person becomes infected after direct contact with an infected object. It spreads from person to person through direct contact between them. Strict hand washing, especially in hospitals, can prevent spread.
But new research from the CDC has shown that cases across America will more than triple between 2020 and 2021, with antibiotic-resistant strains also becoming more common.
The number of clinical and screening cases of cauris reported to the CDC between 2013 and 2021
The distribution of cauris cases in the US as reported to the CDC between 2013 and 2021
Most transmissions occur in health care settings, particularly among residents of long-term care facilities or those on stationary devices or mechanical ventilators.
The report, published Monday in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine, examines the fungus, which has received a lot of attention in recent months.
Due to the popular HBO show The Last of Us, which was about Cordyceps, which evolved to infect people, control their minds and turn them into bloodthirsty zombies who watch vines explode from their bodies and infect others. focused on fungal infections.
The World Health Organization warns that fungal infections are becoming a “major threat” to public health.
Some experts argue that mold is becoming more common around the world as the changing climate makes environments more suitable for them.
The latest study examines confirmed and probable cases reported to state and local health departments and the CDC between 2016 and 2021.
Researchers found that the number of infections rose from 1,310 in 2020 to 4,041 in 2021.
CDC data shows that by 2021, fungal infections will have already caused 7,000 deaths in the US — and 1.5 million worldwide.
And the latest data shows that the increase in cauris cases is not stopping, with 2,377 clinical cases and 5,754 screening cases in the last year.
The study also found that the number of cases of the fungus, which is resistant to the antibiotic echinocandin, has also increased – in 2021 there were about three times as many cases as in the two previous years.
Candida caused 1,769 deaths in 2021, the highest number of any fungal infection in the United States. Aspergillosis caused 1,236 deaths while pneumositis accounted for 449
Fungal infections were responsible for more than 75,000 hospitalizations in the US in 2021. Candida caused most of these, leading to the hospitalization of more than 26,000 people. The second most common also targeted by the Georgia vaccine were aspergillosis, which accounted for nearly 15,000, and pneumositis, which caused just over 10,000
The antifungal agent echinocandin is the first line of therapy for the treatment of cauris.
The fungus was first reported in the US in 2016.
Three years later, the CDC gave the fungus its highest concern because it is often multi-drug resistant, easily transmissible in healthcare settings, and can cause serious infections with high mortality rates.
The main symptoms are fever and chills, which do not improve. The fungus can cause many different types of infections, e.g. B. in the bloodstream, in wounds or ears.
The deadly fungal infection “Valley Fever” is spreading in the US
Cases of valley fever have increased twentyfold since the turn of the century.
The death rate depends on the state, but ranges from 30 to 60 percent.
It is spread by direct contact and can also be transmitted by contact with contaminated surfaces or equipment.
People get the fungus through physical contact with an infected person.
The fungus kills more than one in three people with invasive cauris (in which the fungus has caused an infection that affects the blood, heart or brain).
Researchers looked at clinical and screening cases. Because screening is not done consistently in the United States, the number of cauris cases may be underestimated, they said.
Many of the early cases of cauris in the US were imported from abroad, with most cases in recent years due to local transmission.
New York City and Chicago were the hardest hit, but cases of the fungus have now occurred in more than half of US states.
Most cases are spread in long-term care hospitals and nursing homes.
Patients who are already ill and have multiple conditions or are on ventilators are at greatest risk.
A total of 3,270 clinical cases and 7,413 screening cases were registered between 2019 and 2021.
Previously, cases rose from 53 in 2016 to 330 in 2018 and then by 44 percent to 475 in 2019.
The number of clinical cases continued to increase each year, reaching 756 in 2020 and then almost doubling to 1471 in 2021.
The number of screening cases also increased, essentially tripling from 1,310 in 2020 to 4,041 in 2021.
Three states — Oregon, Minnesota and Michigan — all reported their first case of the fungus in 2021. Meanwhile, areas with previous cases of limited spread, such as California, Texas and Florida, have seen new and increasing transmission.
The researchers said the growth in cauris cases reflects “shortcomings in the early detection of cases and the implementation of infection prevention and control measures.”
They added that the increased spread may have been “exacerbated by pandemic pressures on health care and public health systems.”
The results “underscore the need for improved detection and infection control practices to prevent the spread of cauris,” the study authors wrote.
Source link
Crystal Leahy is an author and health journalist who writes for The Fashion Vibes. With a background in health and wellness, Crystal has a passion for helping people live their best lives through healthy habits and lifestyles.
