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Introduction: Our knowledge has gaps regarding severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) replication levels and its association to severity of Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). The aim of this study was to investigate the association of SARS-CoV-2 viral load with disease severity and serum biomarkers in COVID-19 patients. Methodology: Viral load was determined via cycle threshold (Ct) values of SARS-CoV-2 real-time reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) in 214 adult patients. Ct values were compared with clinical severity, biochemical and hematological biomarkers. Results: Clinical course of the disease was mild (49.1%), moderate (40.2%), and severe (10.7%). Median Ct value was 28.2 (IQR: 22.2–33.8) during the first week of the disease. Ct values were lower within five days after symptom onset [lowest Ct value on the third day (median: 24, IQR: 20.6–32.3)], but they increased significantly during the second and third weeks. No association was detected between admission Ct values and disease severity. Gender, age, co-morbidity, and mortality did not differ significantly in patients with low (≤ 25) and high (> 25) Ct values. White blood cell, neutrophil, platelet, and especially lymphocyte counts, were significantly lower in patients with low Ct values. Conclusions: No definitive/clear correlation between SARS-CoV-2 viral load and severity and mortality was found in the studied COVID-19 patients. However, neutrophil, platelet, and especially lymphocyte count were significantly lower in patients with a high viral load.

Background Candida species are among the important nosocomial infection agents. Since morbidity and mortality are high in invasive candidiasis, early diagnosis is crucial. Hence, rapid serologic tests are needed for diagnosis. One of these methods is the detection of mannan antigen (Mn) and anti-mannan antibody (A-Mn) in the blood. Objectives In this study, we aimed to evaluate the performance of Mn and A-Mn testing in the diagnosis of candidemia. Methods Seventy-two patients with candidemia, 30 patients with bacteremia, 26 individuals without infection as the control group were included in the study. Candida Mn and A-Mn levels were measured by the ELISA method. Sensitivity, specificity, and negative and positive predictive values were calculated to evaluate the performance of the tests. Results The sensitivity and specificity of the Mn in patients with candidemia were 31.9% and 78.7%, respectively. Mn positivity was significantly higher in neutropenic candidemia patients compared with non-neutropenic candidemia patients (p = 0.026). In the A-Mn test, sensitivity and specificity were 81.9% and 42.6%, respectively, and there was no significant difference between the candidemia and bacteremia groups. It was found that the specificity increased (90.2%) when both tests were used together. Conclusions It was determined that the use of Mn and A-Mn tests alone did not contribute significantly to the diagnosis of candidemia, and the combined use of Mn/ A-Mn tests may be useful. It was concluded that the Mn is a more valuable diagnostic tool in the neutropenic patient group, and regular weekly Mn screening can be recommended in these patients.

Background: A rapid and reliable diagnostic test is needed to reduce mortality through early diagnosis of invasive aspergillosis (IA) in patients with hematological malignancies. Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of serum and bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) Aspergillus galactomannan lateral flow assay (GM-LFA) in IA diagnosis and determine the correlation of GM-LFA with GM enzyme immunoassay (GM-EIA) in patients with hematological malignancies. Methods: In this prospective multicenter study, we used serum and BAL fluid samples from patients with hematological malignancies and suspected IA and performed GM-LFA and GM-EIA. According to the EORTC/MSGERC criteria, patients were grouped as proven (n=6), probable (n=22), possible IA (n=55), or no IA (n=88). The performance of serum GM-LFA at 0.5 optical density index (ODI) and area under the curve (AUC) were calculated. Spearman’s correlation analysis and kappa statistics were performed to determine the agreement between the tests. Results: GM-LFA showed an AUC of 0.832 in proven/probable IA (sensitivity [SEN], specificity [SPE], negative predictive value [NPV], and diagnostic accuracy were 75%, 100%, 92.6%, and 93.9%, respectively, at a 0.5 ODI) versus that in no IA. A moderate positive correlation was noted between the GM-LFA and GM-EIA scores (p=0.01). The observed agreement between the tests at 0.5 ODI was almost perfect (pConclusions: Serum GM-LFA demonstrated high discriminatory power and good diagnostic performance for IA in patients with hematological malignancies.

Candida türleri hastanede yatan hastalarda özellikle hematolojik maligniteli hastalarda önde gelen invazif fungal enfeksiyon etkenidir. Bu çalışma, hematolojik maligniteli hastalarda kandidemi prevalansını, mortalite ile ilişkili kontrol edilebilir risk faktörlerini ve antifungal direnci belirlemeyi, ampirik antifungal tedaviye rehberlik edecek ve enfeksiyon kontrol stratejilerinin geliştirilmesine katkıda bulunacak bilgiler elde etmeyi amaçlamaktadır. Uludağ Üniversitesi Tıp Fakültesi Hastanesi Hematoloji Kliniğinde 2009-2016 yılları arasında Candida kan kültürü pozitif saptanan hematolojik maligniteli hastaların demografik verileri, laboratuvar sonuçları, antifungal duyarlılıkları ve tedavi sonuçları geriye dönük olarak incelendi. Hematolojik maligniteleri olan 2489 hastanın 45’inde 45 kandidemi atağı saptandı. Bu hastaların büyük çoğunluğu akut lösemi hastalarıydı (%75.5). Çalışmamızda hematolojik malignitesi olan hastalarda kandidemi insidansını %1.8 bulduk; akut lösemili hastalarda ise bu oran %2.3 idi. Hastaların tür dağılımında C. albicans dışı türler hakimdi (38/45, %84,4). Genel olarak yatan hastalara kıyasla hematolojik malignitesi olan hastalarda C. krusei ve C. tropicalis daha yaygındı. C. parapsilosis her iki grupta da kandidemi için yaygın bir etkendi. Antifungal direnç, flukonazole karşı sadece iki C. parapsilosis izolatında antifungal direnç gözlendi. Toplam 30 günlük ölüm oranı %55,5 idi. Mortalite ile ilişkili bağımsız risk faktörleri hipoalbuminemi, aktif hastalık, septik şok ve monoterapi almaktı. Sonuç olarak, Tedavisindeki gelişmelere rağmen, ilişkili mortalitede önemli bir azalma sağlanamamıştır. Kandidemi tedavisinde lokal epidemiyolojik çalışmalar hala önemini korumaktadır. C. parapsilosis, kötü kateter yönetiminin bir göstergesi olarak kabul edilir. Çalışmamızda C. parapsilosis yüksek oranda tespit edilmiş ve antifungale direnç gösteren tek tür olmuştur. Bu, kandidemi ile mücadelede iyi kateter yönetiminin öneminin yanı sıra ampirik antifungal tedavi stratejilerinde epidemiyolojik çalışmaların önemini vurgulamaktadır.

Background: Human coronaviruses (CoV) are significant causes etiological factors of respiratory tract infections. There are four major subgroups of CoVs, known as alpha, beta, gamma and delta. Four types of endemic human CoVs are 229E, OC43, NL63 and HKU1. Aims and Objectives: In this retrospective study, we aimed to analyze the results of the respiratory samples of hospitalized patients by Real-Time(RT) PCR for CoVs 229E, NL63,OC43 and HKU1. Methodology: Hospitalized patients with respiratory symptoms, including nasal congestion, rhinorrhea, nasal discharge, sneezing, sore throat and cough, were tested by RT PCR between April 2018 and March 2020. We retrospectively investigated the results of 1422 respiratory samples including 1245 nasopharyngeal swabs and 177 BAL samples. Detection rate and subtypes of CoV among upper and lower respiratory samples were retrospectively analyzed from patient records. Results: Patients were between 0-93 years with a mean age of 26 years. We detected 142 (11,4%) CoVs in 1245 nasopharyngeal samples and 21 CoVs (11,9%) in 177 BAL samples. Most common CoV was OC43 (n=72, 44,2%) in overall samples. Conclusion: Although CoV infections are predominant in the winter season, they are diagnosed throughout the year with lower incidence in summer and are identified in individuals of all ages. Understanding the epidemiological and virological features of CoV infections is important to effectively control their burden.

Objectives Aspergillus fumigatus causes several diseases in humans and azole resistance in A. fumigatus strains is an important issue. The aim of this multicentre epidemiological study was to investigate the prevalence of azole resistance in clinical and environmental A. fumigatus isolates in Turkey. Methods Twenty-one centres participated in this study from 1 May 2018 to 1 October 2019. One participant from each centre was asked to collect environmental and clinical A. fumigatus isolates. Azole resistance was screened for using EUCAST agar screening methodology (EUCAST E.DEF 10.1) and was confirmed by the EUCAST E.DEF 9.3 reference microdilution method. Isolates with a phenotypic resistance pattern were sequenced for the cyp51A gene and microsatellite genotyping was used to determine the genetic relationships between the resistant strains. Results In total, resistance was found in 1.3% of the strains that were isolated from environmental samples and 3.3% of the strains that were isolated from clinical samples. Mutations in the cyp51A gene were detected in 9 (47.4%) of the 19 azole-resistant isolates, all of which were found to be TR34/L98H mutations. Microsatellite genotyping clearly differentiated the strains with the TR34/L98H mutation in the cyp51A gene from the strains with no mutation in this gene. Conclusions The rate of observed azole resistance of A. fumigatus isolates was low in this study, but the fact that more than half of the examined strains had the wild-type cyp51A gene supports the idea that other mechanisms of resistance are gradually increasing., Bursa Uludag University Scientific Research Projects Commission [QUAP[T]-2015-5]; Ener Private Health Service Company, This work was partly supported by Bursa Uludag University Scientific Research Projects Commission (QUAP[T]-2015-5) and Ener Private Health Service Company.

Bloodstream infections due to yeast species especially Candida spp. have been reported to be important healthcare associated infections with high mortality and morbidity rates. Candidemia causes prolonged hospital stays as well as increased cost. In order to prevent or treat these life-threatening bloodstream infections successfully, nationwide epidemiological data should be available about the etiological agents of these infections. Multi-centre national epidemiological data on yeast bloodstream infections in Turkey is lacking. A retrospective study was designed and data from six different centres in Turkey between 2011 and 2016 years were gathered and analysed for the distribution and frequency of yeast species in order to assist clinicians in their choice of early and appropriate antifungal therapy. All laboratories used automated blood culture systems for the isolation of blood strains. All the participating centres performed the identification of their own isolates by conventional methods using germ tube test, morphology on corn meal agar with tween 80 and chromogenic media and the identification was confirmed by API 20C AUX, API ID 32C or matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time of flight mass spectrophotometry (MALDI-TOF MS) systems. The analysis of the results was performed on the basis of intensive care units (ICUs), other inpatient clinics (OICs) and totally all clinics (ACs). Totally 2547 yeast isolates were determined from six participating centres during six years. According to the total ACs results, Candida albicans was the most prevalent species (43.1%), followed by Candida parapsilosis complex (29.1%), Candida glabrata (10.1%), Candida tropicalis (7.5%), Candida krusei (2.4%) and Candida kefyr (1.6%) and the remaining (6.2%) of them consisted of other yeast species. The distribution of the Candida species did not show statistically significant difference between the years, however the increase of C.parapsilosis complex in 2016 was statistically significant, (p= 0.02). During the study period, totally 1054 yeast isolates were obtained from the ICUs of the centres. C.albicans predominated with 476 (45.2%) isolates and C.parapsilosis complex (28.7%), C.glabrata (10.7%) and C.tropicalis (7.3%) were the other leading species in ICUs. Among 1493 isolates of the OICs of six centres participated in the study, C.albicans was the most prevalent species with 622 (41.7%) isolates. The other frequent species of OICs were C.parapsilosis complex (29.5%), C.glabrata (9.6%) and C.tropicalis (7.6%) resembling ICU results. It can be concluded that C.albicans is still the leading cause of bloodstream infections in the six different centres located in various geographical areas of Turkey.

Introduction Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2)-specific humoral immune persistence has been proposed to be affected by patients' characteristics. Moreover, available conflicting assay results are needed to be settled through comparative research with defined clinical specimens. Methods This prospective study investigated SARS-CoV-2-specific antibodies among 43 adults and 34 children at a mean of 12 weeks after the onset of COVID-19 symptoms using six serological assays and compared their performance. We used two Euroimmun (Euroimmun, Luebeck, Germany), two automated Roche Elecsys (Basel, Switzerland), and two rapid immuno-chromatographic Ecotest (Matrix Diagnostics, Assure Tech. (Hangzhou) Co., L, China) assays to investigate SARS-CoV-2 antibodies. Results The findings showed that the Roche Elecsys anti-S total test yielded the best positivity/sensitivity (children 94.1% and adults 93.0%; p = 0.877) while five immunoglobulin IgG targeting assays had similar positivity/sensitivity between children (88.2% to 94.1%) and adults (88.4% to 93.0%) (p0.05). Although IgM positivity was relatively low (p0.001), it was found in the majority of our pediatric and adult patients (67.6% and 86.0%, respectively; p = 0.098). SARS-CoV-2 S IgG titers were found to be higher among males in pediatric and adult groups compared to females (p = 0.027 and p = 0.041, respectively). Furthermore, we observed significantly higher antibody titers among pneumonia patients (p = 0.001). Conclusion Overall, we concluded SARS-CoV-2 antibody persistence over an average of 12 weeks after the onset of COVID-19 symptoms. While automated Roche Elecsys total antibody assays yielded the best sensitivity (90%) and five assays targeting IgG had acceptable performance. Patients with pneumonia and males have higher antibody titers. The effect of antibody persistence on re-infections should be monitored in longitudinal studies.

Objective: To evaluate the serological, radiological and epidemiological analysis of suspected cystic echinococcosis patients, and to assess the positivity rate in the region. Method: The retrospective study was conducted at Bursa Uludag University Hospital, Bursa, Turkey, and comprised data from January 2009 to December 2017 related to patients of either gender with suspected cystic echinococcosis who underwent indirect haemagglutination testing. Demographic and clinical data of patients who tested positive were analysed. Statistical analysis was done using SPSS 23. Results: Of the 3910 patients with a mean age of 41.6±19.35 years (range: 0-93 years) who underwent indirect haemagglutination testing, 692(17.7%) tested positive; 390(56.4%) females, and 302(43.6%) males. The highest seropositivity rate 107(15.5%) was observed in 2011, followed by 104(15%) in 2016. Seropositive cases were predominantly seen in those aged 40-49 years 131 (18.9%), followed by those aged 50-59 years 124 (17.9%). Conclusion: Cystic echinococcosis was found to be a public health problem South Marmara region of Turkey. Key Words: Echinococcus granulosus, Cystic echinococcosis, Indirect haemagglutination, Seroprevalence.

Introduction Changes in the epidemiology of Candida infections, increasing resistance, and advances in treatment have increased the need to perform antifungal susceptibility testing in clinical laboratories. Standardized reference, the microbroth dilution method, and various commercial antifungal susceptibility test systems are used to determine antifungal susceptibility. This study aims to determine and compare the antifungal susceptibility of various Candida species isolated from blood cultures in our laboratory with the CLSI M27 microdilution reference method and VITEK 2 automated system (bioMérieux, Marcy-l'Étoile, France). Methods The antifungal susceptibility of a total of 140 Candida strains to fluconazole, voriconazole, and amphotericin B, and a total of 92 strains to anidulafungin was tested with the CLSI M27 method and the VITEK 2 automated system. For fluconazole, voriconazole, and amphotericin B, essential and categorical agreement percentages were calculated between the two methods. Because there is no anidulafungin in the VITEK 2 system, anidulafungin results obtained with CLSI were compared with micafungin only in terms of categorical agreement. In the category comparison, CLSI clinical breakpoints were used; the epidemiological cut-off values were used when they were not available. Very major error, major error, and minor error rates were calculated. Results In general, the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values obtained with VITEK 2 for azole group drugs were found to be one-fold higher than the CLSI MICs read at the 24th hour. While the essential agreement between the two methods was >90% for amphotericin B and voriconazole, it remained at 85% for fluconazole. Overall, the best categorical agreement was obtained with amphotericin B (99.3%), and the least categorical agreement was obtained with voriconazole (85.7%). A very major error was seen with amphotericin B (0.7%) and fluconazole (0.7%) in one C. parapsilosis strain each. No resistance was detected with VITEK 2 in one C. glabrata strain found to be resistant to fluconazole by the reference method. Major and minor error rates were higher for azole drugs than amphotericin B and anidulafungin/micafungin. Conclusion The VITEK 2 system is a fast and highly applicable system, and with these features, it is advantageous for routine laboratories. In this study, although the error rate was not very high, one fluconazole-resistant C. parapsilosis and C. glabrata strain could not be detected with VITEK 2. The increase in data on the antifungal performance of the VITEK 2 system, which is available in many routine laboratories due to its ability to be used for bacteria identification and sensitivity, will contribute to the usability of the system for this purpose. In this study, data that will support the literature information in terms of the antifungal performance of the VITEK 2 system are presented.

The incidence of invasive fungal infections (IFIs) has increased due to intensive chemotherapy in childhood leukemia. The aim of this study was to evaluate the incidence, risk factors, causative pathogens, and impact on survival of IFIs among pediatric leukemia patients.The hospital records of 307 children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL, n=238), acute myeloid leukemia (AML, n=51), and relapsed leukemia (n=18) between January 2010 and December 2015 were retrospectively evaluated.A total of 1213 febrile neutropenia episodes were recorded and 127 (10.4%) of them were related to an IFI. Of 307 children, 121 (39.4%) developed IFIs. The mean age was significantly older in the IFI group compared to children without IFIs (p0.001). IFIs were defined as possible, probable, and proven in 73.2%, 11.9%, and 14.9% of the attacks, respectively. Invasive aspergillosis (81.9%) was the most frequent infection, followed by invasive candidiasis (13.4%) and rare fungal diseases (4.8%). The majority of IFI attacks in both ALL and AML occurred during the induction phase. In total, the death rate was 24% and the IFI-related mortality rate was 18%. The mortality rate among children with IFIs was found to be significantly higher than that of children without IFIs (p0.001). Overall and event-free survival rates at 5 years were also found to be significantly lower in the IFI group (p0.001). Relapse (odds ratio: 8.49) was the most effective risk factor for mortality, followed by developing an IFI episode (odds ratio: 3.2) and AML (odds ratio: 2.33) according to multivariate regression analysis.Our data showed that IFIs were more common in older children. Although proven and probable IFI episodes were more frequently diagnosed in cases of relapse and AML, children with ALL and AML had similar frequencies of experiencing at least one episode Conclusion: Our data showed that IFIs were more common in older children. Although proven and probable IFI episodes were more frequently diagnosed in cases of relapse and AML, children with ALL and AML had similar frequencies of experiencing at least one episodeÇocukluk çağı lösemisinde yoğun kemoterapi nedeniyle invaziv mantar enfeksiyonlarının (IFI) insidansı artmıştır. Bu çalışmanın amacı, pediatrik lösemi hastalarında IFI’nın insidansını, risk faktörlerini, nedensel patojenleri ve sağkalım üzerindeki etkisini değerlendirmektir.Ocak 2010 ile Aralık 2015 tarihleri arasında akut lenfoblastik lösemili (ALL, n=238), akut myeloid lösemili (AML, n=51) ve relaps lösemili (n=18) 307 çocukların hastane kayıtları geriye dönük olarak değerlendirildi.Toplam 1213 febril nötropeni atağı kaydedildi ve bunların 127’si (%10,4) IFI ile ilgiliydi. Bu 307 çocuğun 121’i (%39,4) IFI geliştirdi. Ortalama yaş, IFI grubunda IFI olmayan çocuklara kıyasla anlamlı olarak daha büyük bulundu (p0,001). IFI, atakları sırasıyla; %73,2, %11,9 ve %14,9’unda olası, yüksek olası ve kanıtlanmış olarak tanımlandı. İnvazif aspergilloz (%81,9) en sık görülen enfeksiyondu, bunu invaziv kandidiyazis (%13,4) ve nadir mantar hastalıkları (%4,8) izledi. Hem ALL hem de AML’deki IFI ataklarının çoğu indüksiyon aşamasında görüldü. Toplamda ölüm oranı %24 ve IFI bağlantılı ölüm oranı %18 olarak bulundu. IFI’lı çocuklarda ölüm oranı, IFI olmayan çocuklarda anlamlı olarak daha yüksek bulundu (p0,001). Beş yılda genel ve olaysız sağkalım, IFI grubunda önemli ölçüde daha düşük bulundu (p0,001). Relaps (odds oranı, 8,49), mortalite üzerinde en etkili risk faktörü oldu ve bunu, çok değişkenli regresyon analizi ile bir IFI epizodu geçirmek (odds oranı, 3,2) ve AML olmak (odds oranı, 2,33) izledi.Çalışmamız, IFI’nın büyük yaştaki çocuklarda daha yaygın olduğunu gösterdi. Kanıtlanmış ve olası IFI epizodlarının nüks ve AML’de daha sık saptanmasına karşın, ALL ve AML’li çocukların da benzer sıklıkta en az bir IFI atağı geçirdiği görüldü. Nadir mantar hastalıkları önemli bir sorun olarak tanımlandı. Tedavideki başarıya rağmen, IFI’nın akut lösemili çocuklarda ölüm oranını artırdığı saptandı.

Micafungin is recommended especially in patients with liver and kidney failure and in the presence of other side effects due to antifungals apart from its known priority indications such as invasive candidiasis. The aim of this study was to evaluate the children who have received micafungin treatment. In the study, 125 children who were hospitalized in the pediatric wards and intensive care units of our hospital and had used micafungin between November 2016 and January 2019 were analyzed retrospectively. Clinical data, micafungin indication, blood values on the first and fourth days of the treatment, side effects of the drug and efficacy were evaluated. Sixty percent (75/125) of the patients were male and the mean age of all the patients were 58 ± 67 (0-215, 30) months. Approximately half of the cases (48%) had malignancy and 13% of them were premature. Sixty-two percent (n= 37) of the malignencies were hematological (27 acute lymphocytic leukemia, nine acute myeloid leukemia, one myelodysplastic syndrome) and 38% (n= 23) were oncological (six neuroblastoma, four Hodgkin lymphoma, two Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, five sarcomas, one hepatoblastoma, five others) malignencies. The major cause of hospitalization was sepsis (53%). The patients had several risk factors like immunosuppressive therapy (n= 68, 54%), neutropenia (n= 61, 49%), central venous catheter (n= 102, 82%), nasogastric tube (n= 63, 50%), endotracheal intubation tube (n= 49, 39%), urinary catheter (n= 14, 11%) and total parenteral nutrition (n= 81, 65%). Thirteen percent (n= 16) of the cases were post-operative patients. Candida species were cultivated in 97 clinical specimens (blood, endotracheal aspirate, sputum, urine, etc.) among 23 (18%) of the patients. Thirteen (10%) of the patients had candidemia and 62% of them were non-albicans strains. In all candidemias, strains were echinocandin susceptible, and blood cultures were negative within four days. When all the patients (n= 125) were evaluated, a significant decrease in C-reactive protein, an increase in sodium, and a decrease in alanine aminotransferase were observed on the fourth day of micafungin treatment (p

Introduction Amphotericin B (AmB-d) is one of the most effective therapeutic options against frequently life-threatening systemic fungal infections in patients with hematologic malignancies. However, significant adverse effects including nephrotoxicity associated with its use limit its more widespread use. The objectives of our study were to determine the incidence of AmB-d associated nephrotoxicity, to evaluate clinical and epidemiological characteristics of patients, and to support the notion that conventional amphotericin B remains a valid therapeutic option among hematologic patients with proper patient selection. Materials and methods A total of 110 patients with hematologic malignancies were admitted to our Hematology Unit between January 2014 and November 2017 who required anti-fungal therapy during intensive systemic chemotherapy. The incidence of AmB-d associated nephrotoxicity, side effect profile, time to nephrotoxicity, and clinical and epidemiological characteristics associated with treatment success were assessed retrospectively. Results Of the 110 patients receiving AmB-d, 70 (63.6%) were male and 40 (36.4%) were female. The mean age of participants was 44 years. The most common diagnosis was acute myeloid leukemia (n=53, 48.2%), and the most common chemotherapy protocol was 7 + 3 remission-induction (cytarabine 100 mg/m² days 1-7, Idarubicin 12 mg/m² days 1-3; n=24, 21.8%). In 56.4% of the patients, antifungal therapy was given empirically. In 40 patients (36.4%), nephrotoxicity was observed following antifungal treatment, and only four patients had stage 3 renal failure. The mean duration of time to nephrotoxicity from initiation of amphotericin B was four days (min: 2, max: 31). All patients were found to receive at least one additional potential nephrotoxic treatment during the antifungal treatment process. Conclusion: AmB-d is associated with a significant risk of nephrotoxicity. In most hematological patients, antifungal treatment is initiated empirically, and patients received prolonged courses of treatment. Therefore, it is plausible to initiate such treatment with AmB-d, when one considers the already high treatment costs in this patient group as well as the fact that AmB-d offers similar efficacy to antifungal agents at a lower cost. AmB-d may be recommended as a first-line agent in this patient group with the introduction of newer and more costly antifungal agents when needed, on the basis of the fact that these patients can be closely monitored in a hospital setting, reversible nature of nephrotoxicity upon discontinuation, and rare occurrence of severe renal failure requiring dialysis.

Bloodstream infections due to yeast species especially Candida spp. have been reported to be important healthcare associated infections with high mortality and morbidity rates. Candidemia causes prolonged hospital stays as well as increased cost. In order to prevent or treat these life-threatening bloodstream infections successfully, nationwide epidemiological data should be available about the etiological agents of these infections. Multi-centre national epidemiological data on yeast bloodstream infections in Turkey is lacking. A retrospective study was designed and data from six different centres in Turkey between 2011 and 2016 years were gathered and analysed for the distribution and frequency of yeast species in order to assist clinicians in their choice of early and appropriate antifungal therapy. All laboratories used automated blood culture systems for the isolation of blood strains. All the participating centres performed the identification of their own isolates by conventional methods using germ tube test, morphology on corn meal agar with tween 80 and chromogenic media and the identification was confirmed by API 20C AUX, API ID 32C or matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time of flight mass spectrophotometry (MALDI-TOF MS) systems. The analysis of the results was performed on the basis of intensive care units (ICUs), other inpatient clinics (OICs) and totally all clinics (ACs). Totally 2547 yeast isolates were determined from six participating centres during six years. According to the total ACs results, Candida albicans was the most prevalent species (43.1%), followed by Candida parapsilosis complex (29.1%), Candida glabrata (10.1%), Candida tropicalis (7.5%), Candida krusei (2.4%) and Candida kefyr (1.6%) and the remaining (6.2%) of them consisted of other yeast species. The distribution of the Candida species did not show statistically significant difference between the years, however the increase of C.parapsilosis complex in 2016 was statistically significant, (p= 0.02). During the study period, totally 1054 yeast isolates were obtained from the ICUs of the centres. C.albicans predominated with 476 (45.2%) isolates and C.parapsilosis complex (28.7%), C.glabrata (10.7%) and C.tropicalis (7.3%) were the other leading species in ICUs. Among 1493 isolates of the OICs of six centres participated in the study, C.albicans was the most prevalent species with 622 (41.7%) isolates. The other frequent species of OICs were C.parapsilosis complex (29.5%), C.glabrata (9.6%) and C.tropicalis (7.6%) resembling ICU results. It can be concluded that C.albicans is still the leading cause of bloodstream infections in the six different centres located in various geographical areas of Turkey.

Invasive fungal infections (IFIs) are a significant cause of morbidity and mortality among neutropenic patients undergoing chemotherapy for acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and stem cell transplantation. The aim of this study was to evaluate the real-life impact of posaconazole prophylaxis.Eighty-four adult patients were included with AML under remission induction chemotherapy and posaconazole prophylaxis. The 34 patients in the control group did not receive primary antifungal prophylaxis. The period between June 2006 and January 2009, when antifungal prophylaxis was not administered (control group), was retrospectively compared to the period between December 2010 and May 2012 when primary oral posaconazole prophylaxis was administered in similar conditions (posaconazole group) according to the use of antifungal agents for treatment, breakthrough infections, galactomannan performance, and the necessity for performing bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) procedures.The two groups were compared according to the use of antifungal agents; progression to a different antifungal agent was found in 34/34 patients (100%) in the control group and in 9/84 patients (11%) in the posaconazole group (p0.001). There were four breakthrough IFIs (4/84, 4.8%) in the posaconazole group and 34 IFIs in the control group (p0.001). In addition, 15/34 patients (44%) in the control group required BAL compared to 11/84 patients (13%) in the posaconazole group (p0.001). Posaconazole treatment was discontinued within 7-14 days in 7/84 patients (8.3%) due to poor oral compliance related to mucositis after chemotherapy.Posaconazole appears to be effective and well-tolerated protection against IFIs for AML patients.İnvaziv fungal enfeksiyonlar (İFE) akut myeloid lösemili (AML) ve kök hücre nakli yapılan hastalarda önemli bir mortalite ve morbidite nedenidir. Bu çalışmanın amacı posakonazol profilaksisinin gerçek yaşamdaki etkisini değerlendirmektir.AML ve remisyon indüksiyon kemoterapisi alan ve posakonazol profilaksisi uygulanan 84 erişkin hasta çalışmaya dahil edildi. Kontrol grubunda primer antifungal profilaksi almayan 34 hasta dahil edildi. Haziran 2006 ile Ocak 2009 tarihleri arası primer oral posakonazol profilaksisi almayan (kontrol grubu) ile Aralık 2010 ile Mayıs 2012 arası primer oral posakonazol profilaksisi (posakonazol grubu) uygulanan hastaları geriye dönük olarak; tedavi için antifungal ajan kullanımı, tedavi altında (breakthrough) enfeksiyonlar, galaktomannan performansı ve bronko-alveolar lavaj (BAL) gerekliliği gibi benzer durumlar için karşılaştırdık.İki grup antifungal ajan kullanımına göre karşılaştırıldığında farklı antifungal ajana geçiş kontrol grubunda 34/34 (%100) idi ve posakonazol grubunda bu oran 9/84 (%11) bulundu (p0,001). Posakonazol grubunda 4 tedavi altında (breakthrough) IFE (4/84, %4,8) ve kontrol grubunda ise 34 İFE vardı (p0,001). İlaveten kontrol grubunda BAL gereken hasta 15/34 (%44) iken, posakonazol grubunda BAL gerekliliği 11/84 (%13) bulundu (p0,001). Posakonazol tedavisi hastaların 7/84’ünde (%8,3) kemoterapi sonrası mukozite bağlı oral alım bozukluğu nedeniyle 7-14 gün içinde kesilmişti.Posakonazol AML’li hastaların invaziv fungal enfeksiyonlarına karşı korumada etkili ve iyi tolere ediliyor görünmektedir.

Introduction: Intestinal parasitic infections are among the most significant causes of morbidity and mortality in undeveloped countries, particularly in children. These infections may cause loss in physical and mental progress of children in particular, and loss of work and labour force in adults. Materials and Methods: In this study, patients who applied with various gastrointestinal complaints to the clinics of the Uludag University Medical Faculty, were thoroughly investigated for the presence of intestinal parasites. A total of 8981 stool and 854 cellophane tape samples were parasitologically evaluated. All stool samples were prepared using formal-ethyl acetate concentration method for helminth ova and protozoan cysts, and examined in lugol preparations microscopically with 10x and 40x magnifications. Preparations were examined by using oil-immersion objectives (100x) following trichrome and modified Erlich-Ziehl-Nielsen staining for the diagnosis of intestinal and coccidian protozoa, respectively. For the detection of Entamoeba histolytica adezin antigen in stools, commercial ELISA kit (Wampole® E. histolytica II Test Kit; TechLab, USA) was used. Results: In this study, one or more parasites were found in 327 (3.6%) of the 8981 stool samples (including nonpathogenic protozoa). Enterobius vermicularis eggs were detected in 29 (3.4%) out of 854 samples by using the cellophane tape method. Of the parasite detected cases, 165 (50.5%) were female and 162 (49.5%) were male. Giardia intestinalis (0.9%) and E. vermicularis (3.4%) were the most frequently detected protozoon and helmint parasites, respectively. The parasites were detected mostly in summer months (26.3%). Conclusion: Although the prevalence rates of intestinal parasites were lower than those in the previous studies carried out in the city, it is seen that the presence of intestinal parasites is still a serious public health problem in our region.

Background: Demodex may cause chronic and refractory blepharitis with associated ocular surface problems, and its diagnosis and treatment can be quite challenging. In this study, our aim was to assess the efficacy of tea tree oil in Demodex treatment on caucasian patients in an industrialized region of Turkey, and to develop a systematic scoring system for extremely accurate diagnosis in the absence of advanced facilities. Material/Methods: Charts of 412 patients with blepharitis were reviewed. A group of 39 out of 412 cases were identified as chronic and treatment-refractory, and therefore were enrolled in this study. Eyelashes from each of the lower and upper eyelids of both eyes were evaluated at x40 and x100 magnification using light microscopy. Treatment was started with 4% tea tree oil eyelid gel and 10% eyelash shampoo. Symptoms and findings were scored according to the most common complaints. Results: The mean age of the patients was 54.1 +/- 15.4 years. Seventeen (43.5%) patients were male and 22 (56.5%) patients were female. In 30 out of the 39 patients (76.9%) D. folliculorum was detected. Symptoms disappeared in 25 patients. The mean score of patients who were Demodex-negative was 2.7 +/- 1.0, and the mean score of patients who were Demodex-positive was 3.8 +/- 1.6 (p=0.047). Ninety-four percent of those with a score of 4 and over were found to be Demodex-positive (p=0.025). Conclusions: Treatment with tea tree oil can be successful. If there is no facility to identify Demodex under light microscopy, we recommend starting treatment for patients who have scores of 4 and over using the scoring chart developed in this study.

Almost 75% of women experience vulvovaginal Candida infection at least once during their lifetime and 90% of these infections are due to Candida albicans (Marchaim et al. 2012). Both diagnosis and ...

Micafungin is recommended especially in patients with liver and kidney failure and in the presence of other side effects due to antifungals apart from its known priority indications such as invasive candidiasis. The aim of this study was to evaluate the children who have received micafungin treatment. In the study, 125 children who were hospitalized in the pediatric wards and intensive care units of our hospital and had used micafungin between November 2016 and January 2019 were analyzed retrospectively. Clinical data, micafungin indication, blood values on the first and fourth days of the treatment, side effects of the drug and efficacy were evaluated. Sixty percent (75/125) of the patients were male and the mean age of all the patients were 58 ± 67 (0-215, 30) months. Approximately half of the cases (48%) had malignancy and 13% of them were premature. Sixty-two percent (n= 37) of the malignencies were hematological (27 acute lymphocytic leukemia, nine acute myeloid leukemia, one myelodysplastic syndrome) and 38% (n= 23) were oncological (six neuroblastoma, four Hodgkin lymphoma, two Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, five sarcomas, one hepatoblastoma, five others) malignencies. The major cause of hospitalization was sepsis (53%). The patients had several risk factors like immunosuppressive therapy (n= 68, 54%), neutropenia (n= 61, 49%), central venous catheter (n= 102, 82%), nasogastric tube (n= 63, 50%), endotracheal intubation tube (n= 49, 39%), urinary catheter (n= 14, 11%) and total parenteral nutrition (n= 81, 65%). Thirteen percent (n= 16) of the cases were post-operative patients. Candida species were cultivated in 97 clinical specimens (blood, endotracheal aspirate, sputum, urine, etc.) among 23 (18%) of the patients. Thirteen (10%) of the patients had candidemia and 62% of them were non-albicans strains. In all candidemias, strains were echinocandin susceptible, and blood cultures were negative within four days. When all the patients (n= 125) were evaluated, a significant decrease in C-reactive protein, an increase in sodium, and a decrease in alanine aminotransferase were observed on the fourth day of micafungin treatment (p0.05). A total of 39 (31%) patients underwent various antifungal treatments for median seven (1-60) days prior to micafungin treatment. Fourteen (36%) of these 39 patients, had elevated liver function tests (LFT), 10 (26%) of them had hypokalemia, and five (13%) of them had elevated renal function tests. Ten (26%) patients had antifungal-induced hypokalemia previously; and potassium levels were normalized after micafungin treatment (p= 0.0001). The patients for which micafungin treatment was chosen due to elevated liver function tests (n= 47, 38%), whether the antifungalinduced or not; alanine aminotransferase and aspartate aminotransferase levels were decreased after micafungin treatment (p= 0.0001 and p= 0.0001, respectively). Nineteen (15%) of the patients have died within the first 30 days of micafungin treatment and one of them had candidemia. No micafungin treatment related significant side effects were observed in any of the patients. Our study showed that micafungin could be a safe and effective option in pediatric cases including newborns with high liver and kidney function tests.

The aim of this study is to investigate the distribution of anti-The blood samples examined for the presence of anti-In our study, anti-Especially in regions where seroprevalence is high, we think that pregnant women and women of childbearing age should be investigated in terms ofBu çalışma, Uludağ Üniversitesi Tıp Fakültesi Sağlık Uygulama ve Araştırma Merkezi’ne kabul edilen toksoplazmoz şüpheli hastalarda anti-Bu çalışmada gönderilen kan örneklerinde anti-Çalışmamızda, olguların 10,603 olgunun 3311’inde (%30,7) anti-Özellikle seropozitifliğin yüksek olduğu bölgelerde gebelerin ve doğurganlık çağındaki kadınların

WOS: 000485661700047, PubMed: 30980958, Objectives: This study investigated the antifungal resistance rates of isolates from candidaemia patients in 12 tertiary-care centres in Turkey. Methods: A total of 1991 Candida spp. isolates from 12 centres isolated from 1997-2017 were included in the study. Species/species complex (SC) identification was performed using conventional methods in all centres, occasionally accompanied by MALDI-TOF/MS. Antifungal susceptibility testing was performed for amphotericin B, fluconazole, itraconazole, posaconazole, voriconazole and micafungin (as echinocandin class representative) using the CLSI microdilution method. Resistance rates were determined according to CLSI clinical breakpoints (CBPs). For drugs and species with undetermined CBPs, epidemiological cut-off values were used for wild-type (WT)/non-WT categorisation. Results: No or low rates of resistance were detected in general for tested Candida spp. isolates. Specifically, overall resistance to fluconazole in isolates of Candida parapsilosis SC and Candida glabrata SC were 7.7% and 0.9%, respectively. Resistance rates for C. parapsilosis SC varied extensively from one center to other (0-47.1%). Importantly, no echinocandin resistance was detected. Rates of non-WT isolates were also generally low: fluconazole against Candida lusitaniae, 4.3%; posaconazole against C. parapsilosis SC, 3.5%; posaconazole against Candida krusei, 1.9%; and voriconazole against C. glabrata SC, 0.5%. Conclusion: This is the first multicentre report of antifungal resistance rates among candidaemia isolates in Turkey, suggesting low resistance rates in general. Due to varying rates of fluconazole resistance in C. parapsilosis SC isolates that was detected at remarkably high levels in some centres, further studies are warranted to explore the source, clonal relatedness and resistance mechanisms of the isolates. (C) 2019 International Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved., PfizerPfizer [WS776070], This study was supported by an Investigator-Initiated Research grant from Pfizer [WS776070 to SA-A]. The sponsor had no role in the study design, data collection or analysis, or manuscript preparation and submission.

Candida species are among the top 10 pathogens causing bloodstream infections associated with high morbidity, mortality. In spite of the development of new antifungal drugs, epidemiological studies have shown that resistance to antifungal drugs among Candida isolates is becoming a serious problem. The aim of this study was to compare the antifungal broth microdilution methods of the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) and European Committee on Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing (EUCAST) for amphotericin B, fluconazole, itraconazole, voriconazole, posaconazole and anidulafungin susceptibility of Candida blood isolates. The study consisted of 74 Candida albicans, 67 Candida parapsilosis, 30 Candida glabrata, and 18 Candida tropicalis isolates. The minimum inhibitory concentrations were determined after 24 and 48 hour of incubation with CLSI method and only 24 hour of incubation with EUCAST method except anidulofungin. The MIC values obtained by both methods were considered to be compatible within ± 2 dilution limits. The categorical agreement between methods for each antifungal agent was assessed using clinical break points and epidemiological cut-off values. The agreement (± 2 dilution) between the methods was found to be species, drug, and incubation time dependent. After 24 hour incubation, good agreement category (90%) was detected between amphotericin B, itraconazole, posaconazole and anidulofungin, but was lower category (85%) was determined with fluconazole and voriconazole especially for relatively slow growing C.glabrata and C.parapsilosis isolates. Excellent categorical agreement (100%) was observed for amfoterisin B/C.parapsilosis, C.glabrata, C.tropicalis and anidulofungin/C.albicans, C.glabrata, C.tropicalis but least category was determined for posaconazole and C.albicans (71.6% at 24 hour; 73% at 48 hour). In vitro resistance of therapeutically used fluconazole and anidulafungin determined by both methods was rare among C.albicans (1.3%, 2.7% respectively), C.glabrata (0%, 3.3% respectively) and C.tropicalis (0%, 5.6% respectively) isolates but, an increase of non-susceptible isolates were observed among C.parapsilosis (11.9% at 24 hour of incubation; 17.9% at 48 hour of incubation) for fluconazole. There was also a cross resistance between fluconazole and voriconazole for three C.parapsilosis isolates and one multidrug resistant (fluconazole, itraconazole, posaconazole and anidulofungin) C.albicans isolate (fluconazole, itraconazole, posaconazole and anidulofungin). As a result in this study, it was determined thatboth methods were similar and can be used according to preference of laboratories. The CLSI antifungal susceptibility test results can be assessed at the end of 24 hour incubation, but sometimes it is important that the evaluation should be performed as a result of 48 hour incubation in slow growing species such as C.glabrata.

Background Local and systemic use of azole derivatives are common in the treatment of vulvovaginal candidiasis. However, there are cases unresponsive to these agents. Herein, we present treatment and follow-up of a patient with fluconazole–itraconazole and voriconazole-resistant recurrent vaginal candidiasis. Methods A 37-year-old woman with no comorbidity used topical and oral antifungal/antibacterial medications (including fluconazole and itraconazole) in the treatment of recurrent vulvovaginitis, was hospitalized due to continuous complaints. Intense, white-colored, odorless vaginal discharge was observed on physical examination. Urine and vaginal swab samples were taken for mycological and bacteriological culture. Metronidazole (500 mg 3x1 i.v.) and high dose fluconazole (600 mg/day i.v.) were initiated empirically for the possibility of dose-dependent resistant Candida infection, but there was no clinical response. Results Candida albicans was isolated in vaginal swab culture, but response to systemic fluconazole treatment for one week was inadequate. Antifungal susceptibility test was performed by microdilution method according to CLSI M27A3 guidelines and MIC values were reported respectively; fluconazole 4 µg/mL (SDD), itraconazole 1 µg/mL (R), posaconazole 0.06 µg/mL (WT), voriconazole 0.25 µg/mL (SDD), anidulafungin ≤ 0.015 µg/mL (S), amphotericin B 0.06 µg/mL (WT). For the resistance mechanism, point mutation in the ERG11 gene and MDR1 and MDR2 from efflux pumps were investigated and only the G464S mutation was detected in the ERG11 gene. Treatment was switched to IV anidulafungin (200 mg on day 1 followed by 100 mg/day). Clinical response was achieved in the patient whose complaints were reduced, and there was no Candida in the repeated vaginal swab culture taken on day 3 of treatment. The patient was discharged after 2 weeks of treatment. She had no recurrence after 2 years follow-up. Conclusion It should be kept in mind that resistant strains may be responsible for recurrent and unresponsive vulvovaginal candidiasis cases. Although there is no case report in which anidulafungin is used for treatment and it should be kept in mind that the anidulafungin is also in the treatment as it is summarized. Disclosures All authors: No reported disclosures.

The difficulties in the diagnosis of invasive fungal disease (IFD) in hematological malignancies and the proper use of the diagnostic tests are among the important problems the clinician face. Although, the defi nitions of IFD from the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) and Mycosis Study Group (MSG) are aimed to standardize the subject, these are only for clinical research. Especially, the diffi culty of mycological diagnosis and the necessity of immediate intervention in molds have led to the adoption of “surrogate markers” which does not verify, but strongly suggests fungal infection. The markers commonly used are galactomannan (GM), beta-glucan and imaging methods. Although there are numerous studies on these diagnostic approaches, none of these markers serve as a support for the clinician, as is in human immunodefi ciency virus (HIV) or cytomegalovirus (CMV) infections. Clinician has an important role in diagnosis and he/she have to make the correct decision by corroborating these diagnostic tools with clinical state of the patient and the available epidemiological data.This paper has been prepared to show the clinician how the available resources can be used. As molecular tests have not been standardized and not used routinely in the clinics, they will not be mentioned here.

Aspergillus fumigatus is the most important etiological agent of invasive aspergillosis. Recently, an increasing number of azole-resistant A. fumigatus isolates have been described in various countries. The prevalence of azole resistance was investigated in this study using our culture collection of A. fumigatus isolates collected between 1999 and 2012 from clinical specimens. Seven hundred and forty-six A. fumigatus isolates, collected from 419 patients, were investigated. First, all isolates were screened for resistance to itraconazole by subculturing on Sabouraud dextrose agar that contained 4 mg/L itraconazole. For isolates that grew on the itraconazole containing agar, the in vitro activities of amphotericin B, itraconazole, voriconazole and posaconazole were determined using the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) M38-A reference method. After PCR amplification, the full sequence of the cyp51A gene and its promoter region was determined for all in vitro azole-resistant isolates. Itraconazole resistance was found in 10.2% of the A. fumigatus isolates. From 2000 onwards, patients were observed annually with an itraconazole-resistant isolate. According to in vitro susceptibility tests, amphotericin B exhibited good activity against all isolates whereas the azoles were resistant. Sequence analysis of the promoter region and CYP51A gene indicated the presence of TR34/L98H in 86.8% (n = 66) of isolates. This initial analysis of the resistance mechanism of A. fumigatus from Turkey revealed a common TR34/L98H mutation in the cyp51A gene.

Fusarium species have started appearing increasingly as the main cause of infections, particularly in immunocompromised patients. In this study, we aimed to present the first epidemiological data from Turkey, analyze fusariosis cases that have been monitored in a university hospital during the past 20 years, identify the responsible Fusarium species, and determine antifungal susceptibilities. A total of 47 cases of fusariosis was included in the study. Fusarium isolates were identified by multilocus sequence typing (MLST). Antifungal susceptibility was tested by the broth microdilution method according to the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) methodology. Of the Fusarium infections, 23.4 % were superficial, 44.7 % were locally invasive, and 31.9 % were disseminated. A significant increase was observed over the years. The Fusarium fujikuroi species complex (FFSC) proved to be the most frequent agent group (17 cases; 51.5 %), followed by the Fusarium solani species complex (FSSC) (14 cases; 42.4 %), the Fusarium dimerum species complex (FDSC), and the Fusarium oxysporum species complexes (FOSC) (one case each). Amphotericin B had the highest in vitro activity against all species. Voriconazole and posaconazole showed interspecies variability across and within Fusarium species complexes. In conclusion, our data support the fact that regional differences exist in the distribution of the Fusarium species and that species-specific differences are observed in antifungal susceptibility patterns. The monitoring of local epidemiological data by determining fungal identity and susceptibility are of importance in guiding the clinical follow-up of patients. Türk Mikrobiyoloji Derneği Ministry of Health, Muscat, Oman

Invasive fungal infections are a major cause of morbidity and mortality among renal transplant recipients. The aim of this study was to investigate the frequency and risk factors for fungal infections in renal transplant recipients. We retrospectively evaluated all kidney transplant recipients at our center from December 1988 to June 2010 for the epidemiology, spectrum, risk factors, and mortality of invasive fungal infections. In 32 patients (10.30 %), at least one fungal infection developed after the transplantation. The most common pathogens causing fungal infections in our patients were Candida spp. and Aspergillus spp. The independent risk factors associated with invasive fungal infection episodes were antibiotic treatment within the last 3 months (OR 15.88, 95 % CI 3.90-64.73, p < 0.001), cytomegalovirus infection (OR 18.54, 95 % CI 9.01-38.17, p < 0.001), and the presence of diabetes mellitus (OR 6.01, 95 % CI 2.95-12.25, p < 0.001). Mortality was significantly higher among patients with fungal infections than among other patients (53.10 and 17.80 %, respectively; p < 0.001). It is difficult to diagnose and treat fungal infections early, and it can be useful to determine independent risk factors in order to identify and treat high-risk patients.

The roles of CRP, PCT, serum amyloid A (SAA), and cytokines in the diagnosis of fungal infections have not yet been clearly demonstrated. This study aims to measure the serum levels of interleukin (IL)-23, IL-17, IL-1β, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, IL-10, transforming growth factor (TGF)-β, C-reactive protein (CRP), procalcitonin (PCT), and serum amyloid A (SAA) in cases of candidemia and to compare them with those observed in cases of bacteremia. For this purpose, the serum cytokine levels from 50 patients with candidemia were compared with those of 14 patients with polymicrobial sepsis, 30 patients with bacteremia, and 27 healthy control subjects. The cytokine levels were studied using sandwich ELISAs according to the manufacturer protocol. The serum levels of TGF-β, IL-23, and IL-17 were found to be significantly higher in the candidemia group in comparison with the samples from those with bacteremia and healthy controls. The PCT and SAA levels were higher in samples from the group with bacteremia those from individuals with candidemia and the healthy control group. Assuming an IL-17 level threshold of >38.79 pg/ml, the sensitivity and specificity were 38% and 96.6%, respectively but considering an IL-23 threshold of >59.97 pg/ml, the sensitivity and specificity values were found to be 72% and 60%, respectively. The sensitivity and the specificity of the TGF-s levels were found to be 85.71% and 53.33%, respectively, when the TGF-s threshold is >560 pg/ml. PCT and SAA demonstrated a superior performance for the differentiation of candidemia and bacteremia. Our study demonstrates that IL-17, IL-23, TGF-s, PCT, and SAA levels could be a diagnostic marker for candidemia.

Candida species are one of the major causes of nosocomial infections and are the fourth most common agent involved in bloodstream infections. The impact of non-albicans Candida species is increasing, however C.albicans is still the most common species. Since the antifungal susceptibility pattern among Candida spp. may be different, rapid diagnosis and identification of non-albicans Candida spp. are important for the determination of antifungal agents that will be used for treatment. The aim of the study was to describe a real-time polymerase chain reaction (Rt-PCR) assay that rapidly detects, identifies and quantitates Candida species from blood culture samples. A total of 50 consecutive positive blood culture bottles (BACTEC, Beckton Dickinson, USA) identified at our laboratory between June-November 2013, were included in the study. Reference strains of Candida spp. (C.albicans ATCC 10231, C.glabrata ATCC 90030, C.tropicalis ATCC 1021, C.krusei ATCC 6258, C.parapsilosis ATCC 22019 and C. dubliniensis CD36) grown on Sabouraud dextrose agar were used for quality control. BACTEC bottles that were positive for Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus were also studied to search the cross-reactivity. A commercial kit (Zymo Research, USA) was used for DNA extraction. Real-time PCR was performed on LightCycler 480 (Roche, Germany) with primers and probes specific for 18S rRNA of Candida species. Twenty microlitres of the reaction mix contained 2 μl of extracted DNA, 2 μl of LightCycler Fast Start DNA Master Probe (Roche Diagnostics, Germany), 2 μl of MgCl(2) (5 mmol), 2 μl of 10x PCR buffer (Roche Diagnostics, Germany), 0.5 μl of each primer (0.01 nmol/μl) and 1 μl of each probe (0.1 μmol/μl) (TibMolBiol, Germany). Amplification was performed using the following conditions; 95°C for 10 mins and 50 cycles of denaturation at 95°C for 10 secs, annealing at 62°C for 10 secs and polymerisation at 72°C for 20 secs. A melting curve was created by cooling the producs at 50°C for 30 secs and then heating to 80°C at a rate of 0.1°C/sec measuring of the fluorescence simultaneously. For the quantitation of fungal DNA according to the standard curve, serial dilutions of C.albicans ATCC 10231 DNA from 3 x 10(5) to 3 x 10(2) ng/μl were used. All of the strains were also identified by conventional methods and sequence analysis in order to compare the results obtained by Rt-PCR. In our study, all patient and standard samples could be amplified, identified and quantitated by this developed Rt-PCR method. A total of 50 strains, of them 26 were C.parapsilosis, 15 were C.glabrata, 6 were C.albicans, and 3 were C.tropicalis have been detected and identified among patient samples. The results were completely concordant with the sequencing and conventional methods, so the sensitivity and specificity of this method were estimated as 100 percent. In conclusion, it was novel Rt-PCR developed and evaluated in this study is considered as a rapid, accurate, reproducible, sensitive and specific method for the detection, identification and quantitation of commonly observed Candida spp. strains.

INTRODUCTION: Invasive fungal infections (IFI) are commonly seen in immunosuppressive patients. Early diagnosis is key to optimizing antifungal treatment success. Betaglucan (BG) assay can detect most of the fungal pathogens except mucormycosis and Cryptococcus. In this study we aimed to evaluate the value of BG as a diagnostic tool in patients with hematological malignancy and IFI.METHODS: Forty-six hematological malignancy patients under induction and consolidation chemotherapy that expected to have neutropenia for more than 14 days with no clinical and radiological signs of IFI are included in this study. Blood Galactomannan (GM) and BG levels were measured 2 times in a week during the hospitalization period. Method A (proven + probable groups vs non IFI) and Method B (proven + probable + possible groups vs. non IFI) variables were determined to assess the sensitivity, specifity and predictive values.RESULTS: In method A; BG test's sensitivity, specifity, positive predictive value (PPV), negative predictive value (NPV) was determined as 68.75%, 84.1%, 52.4%, 91.4% respectively. In method B (proven + probable + possible groups vs. non IFI) BG test sensitivity, specifity, PPV, NPV was determined as 60%, 88.9%, 71.4%, and 82.8% respectively.DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: Depending on our data and present literature; we conclude that BG and GM is a non-invasive contributory test for the diagnosis of IFI The current treatment of the symptomatic extremity, GİRİŞ ve AMAÇ: İnvaziv fungal enfeksiyonlar (IFE) sıklıkla immün süpresif hastalarda görülmektedir. Antifungal tedavi başarısı için erken tanı anahtar öneme sahiptir. Betaglucan (BG) testi mucormikoz ve kriptokoklar dışında birçok mantar patojeni tespit edebilir. Bu çalışmada betaglucan düzeyinin hematolojik kanserli ve IFE'li hastalarda tanısal bir araç olarak değerlendirmeyi amaçladık.YÖNTEM ve GEREÇLER: Indüksiyon veya konsolidasyon tedavisi alan, klinik ve radyolojik IFE bulguları olmayan 14 günden uzun süreli nötropeni beklentisi olan 46 hasta çalışmaya dahil edildi. Hastanede yattıkları süre içerisinde haftada 2 defa kan galaktmannan (GM) ve BG düzeyleri ölçüldü. Sensitivite, spesifite ve öngörğlen değerlerin yorumlanması için Metod A (kanıtlanmış + muhtemel grup vs non-IFE) ve Metod B (kanıtlanmış + muhtemel +olası grup vs non-IFE ) değişkenleri tanımlandı.BULGULAR: Metod A'da; BG testinin sensitivitesi, spesifitesi, pozitif öngörülen değer (PÖD), Negatif öngörülen değer (NÖD) sırasıyla %68.75, %84.1, %52.4, %91.4 olarak tespit edildi. Metod B'de; BG testinin sensitivitesi, spesifitesi, PÖD, NÖD sırasıyla %60, %88.9, %71.4, %82.8 olarak tespit edildi.Hiçbir hastada ameliyat içi istenmeyen durum olmadı. Cerrahi gruptaki 3 hastaya embolizasyon uygulandı. Postoperatif takiplerde 1 hastada enfeksiyon, 2 hastada nüks saptandı.TARTIŞMA ve SONUÇ: Bizim verilerimiz ve mevcut literature dayanarak BG ve GM'nin IFE tanısına katkı sağlayan non-invaziv test olduğu sonucuna vardık.