Population-based surveillance for scedosporiosis in Australia: Epidemiology, disease manifestations and emergence of Scedosporium aurantiacum infection

Christopher Heath, M.A. Slavin, T.C. Sorrell, R. Handke, A. Harun, Michael Phillips, Q. Nguyen, L. Delhaes, D. Ellis, W. Meyer, S.C.A. Chen

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105 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Australia-wide population-based surveillance for scedosporiosis identified 180 cases, with 118 (65.6%) cases of colonization and 62 (34.4%) cases of infection. Predisposing factors for isolation of Scedosporium spp. included chronic lung disease in 37.8% and malignancy in 21.7% of cases. Predictors of invasive disease (n = 62) included haematological stem cell transplantation (n = 7), leukaemia (n = 16) and diabetes mellitus (n = 8). Of 183 phenotypically-speciated isolates, 75 (41%) were Scedosporium prolificans (risk factors: haematologic cancer (n = 17), neutropaenia (n = 14)) and 108 (59%) had Scedosporium apiospermum/Pseudallescheria boydii phenotype [risk factor: diabetes (n = 15)]. Scedosporium prolificans (p 0.01) and leukaemia (p 0.03) independently predicted death. Epidemiological and antifungal susceptibility profiles of Scedosporium aurantiacum (prevalence ≥15.8%) and S. apiospermum were similar. No patient with S. aurantiacum infection (n = 6) died. This is the first description of clinical features associated with S. aurantiacum.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)689-693
JournalClinical Microbiology and Infection
Volume15
Issue number7
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2009

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