MYCOLab Ai Logo - gold and army green

Epidemiology and outcomes of Candida-associated osteoarticular infections: A multicentre retrospective study from Turkey

Summary

This study examined 73 patients in Turkey who developed bone and joint infections caused by Candida fungi over ten years. The researchers found that diabetes was very common among patients and made recovery harder, while surgery to clean out infected tissue significantly improved outcomes. Importantly, they discovered resistance to common antifungal medications was higher in certain Candida species compared to others.

Background

Candida-associated osteoarticular infections are rare but serious complications that occur in approximately 0.4% of adult candidaemia cases. These infections present significant diagnostic and management challenges, often requiring prolonged antifungal therapy and aggressive surgical intervention.

Objective

This multicentre retrospective study investigated the epidemiology, clinical characteristics, fluconazole resistance rates of Candida species in osteoarticular infections across Turkey, and factors influencing complete recovery in affected patients.

Results

Non-albicans Candida species accounted for 50.7% of cases, with C. parapsilosis most frequent. Fluconazole resistance was 3% in C. albicans but 27% in non-albicans species. Spondylodiscitis was the most common presentation, and 68.5% of patients had diabetes mellitus. Surgical debridement was significantly associated with complete recovery (aOR 5.764), while diabetes was associated with lower recovery odds (aOR 0.205).

Conclusion

This multicentre study provides epidemiological data and fluconazole resistance rates for Candida osteoarticular infections in Turkey, documents the emergence of C. auris in this clinical context, and identifies surgical intervention as beneficial and diabetes mellitus as a negative prognostic factor for recovery.
  • Published in:Medical Mycology,
  • Study Type:Multicentre Retrospective Cohort Study,
  • Source: PMID: 40888626, DOI: 10.1093/mmy/myaf080
Scroll to Top