Contamination of health-care workers' hands with Escherichia coli and Klebsiella species after routine patient care: a prospective observational study.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the frequency of health-care worker (HCW) hand contamination by Escherichia coli versus Klebsiella species after patient care and to determine activities associated with contamination. METHODS: We conducted a prospective observational study at two tertiary-care centres. We observed HCWs caring for patients colonized/infected with E. coli or Klebsiella. HCW hands were cultured before room entry and after patient care. Contamination was defined as detecting E. coli or Klebsiella on HCW hands. Risk factors for contamination were analysed using logistic regression. Patient-to-HCW transmission was confirmed by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE). RESULTS: We performed 466 HCW observations: 290 from patients with E. coli, 149 with Klebsiella, and 27 with both species. Eighty-seven per cent of observations (404/464) occurred in patients who had received chlorhexidine bathing within 2 days. HCW hand contamination rates were similar between E. coli (6.2%; 18/290) and Klebsiella (7.4%; 11/149) (p 0.6). High-risk activities independently associated with contamination were toilet assistance (OR 9.34; 95% CI 3.10-28.16), contact with moist secretions (OR 6.93; 95% CI 2.82-17.00), and hygiene/bed-bathing (OR 3.80; 95% CI 1.48-9.80). PFGE identified identical/closely related isolates in the patient and HCW hands in 100% (18/18) of E. coli and 54.5% (6/11) of Klebsiella observations. CONCLUSIONS: We did not find a difference in HCW hand contamination rates between E. coli and Klebsiella after patient care. Hand hygiene should be reinforced after high-risk activities. Discrepancies in matching patient and HCW hand isolates occurred more frequently for Klebsiella than for E. coli; differences in species-level transmission dynamics might exist.

International Society of Cardiovascular Infectious Diseases Guidelines for the Diagnosis, Treatment and Prevention of Disseminated Mycobacterium chimaera Infection Following Cardiac Surgery with Cardiopulmonary Bypass.

Mycobacterial infection-related morbidity and mortality in patients following cardiopulmonary bypass surgery is high and there is a growing need for a consensus-based expert opinion to provide international guidance for diagnosing, preventing and treating in these patients. In this document the International Society for Cardiovascular Infectious Diseases (ISCVID) covers aspects of prevention (field of hospital epidemiology), clinical management (infectious disease specialists, cardiac surgeons, ophthalmologists, others), laboratory diagnostics (microbiologists, molecular diagnostics), device management (perfusionists, cardiac surgeons) and public health aspects.

Multilaboratory Evaluation of In Vitro Antifungal Susceptibility Testing of Dermatophytes for ME1111.

ME1111 is a novel small molecule antifungal agent under development for the topical treatment of onychomycosis. Standardization of the susceptibility testing method for this candidate antifungal is needed. Toward this end, 8 independent laboratories determined the interlaboratory reproducibility of ME1111 susceptibility testing. In addition, we subsequently identified 2 strains as quality control (QC) isolates for the method. In the reproducibility study, 5 blinded clinical strains each of Trichophyton rubrum, Trichophyton mentagrophytes, and Epidermophyton floccosum were tested, while the QC study tested 6 blinded T. rubrum or T. mentagrophytes ATCC strains. Testing was performed in frozen microtiter panels according to the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) M38-A2 methodology. In the reproducibility study, 9 of 15 clinical strains showed interlaboratory agreement of >90% at the 80% inhibition endpoint, with a range of agreement of 76.2% to 100%. In the QC study, 4 of the 6 ATCC strains showed interlaboratory agreement of >90%. ME1111 demonstrated excellent interlaboratory agreement when tested against dermatophytes. Based on this data, the CLSI Subcommittee on Antifungal Susceptibility Tests approved the susceptibility testing of ME1111 against dermatophytes according to M38-A2 methodology, which stipulates RPMI 1640 as the test medium, an inoculum size of 1 to 3 × 10(3) CFU/ml, and an incubation time and temperature of 96 h at 35°C. The MIC endpoint should be 80% inhibition compared with the growth control. T. rubrum ATCC MYA-4438 and T. mentagrophytes ATCC 28185 were selected as QC isolates, with an acceptable range of 0.12 to 1 µg/ml for the two strains.

Detection and Prevalence of Penicillin-Susceptible Staphylococcus aureus in the United States in 2013.

Using blaZ PCR as the "gold standard," the sensitivities of CLSI penicillin zone edge and nitrocefin-based tests for ß-lactamase production in Staphylococcus aureus were 64.5% and 35.5%, respectively, with specificity of 99.8% for both methods. In 2013, 13.5% of 3,083 S. aureus isolates from 31 U.S. centers were penicillin susceptible.

A survey of fetal care centers in the United States.

OBJECTIVE: Fetal care centers have recently emerged in affiliation with children's hospitals throughout the United States. Few studies have evaluated this new multidisciplinary model of care. STUDY DESIGN: We conducted a survey of multidisciplinary fetal care centers in the United States; survey data was analyzed using descriptive statistics. RESULTS: 59 centers were identified; 29 centers (49%) returned completed surveys. Most centers are located in a children's hospital (54%), and the majority of centers (76%) opened in the past 10 years. The majority of centers (62%) are administered by a specialist in Maternal Fetal Medicine or Obstetrics and Gynecology. A specialist in MFM or Ob/Gyn evaluates every patient at 90% of centers; a neonatologist evaluates every patient at 52% of centers. All responding centers have the capability to perform ultrasounds although fewer centers perform fetoscopic surgery (38%) or open fetal surgery (31%). Many centers (41%) conduct research protocols in fetal medicine. Most centers (61%) considered the provision of information to families as their most important goal. CONCLUSIONS: This is the first study to describe multidisciplinary fetal centers in the United States. It demonstrates variability between centers. More research is needed in order to evaluate the impact of this variability.

Multicenter evaluation of the new Vitek 2 yeast susceptibility test using new CLSI clinical breakpoints for fluconazole.

A fully automated antifungal susceptibility test system recently updated to reflect the new species-specific clinical breakpoints (CBPs) of fluconazole for Candida (Vitek 2 AF03 yeast susceptibility test; bioMérieux, Inc., Durham, NC) was compared in three different laboratories with the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) reference broth microdilution (BMD) method by testing 2 quality control strains, 10 reproducibility strains (4 Candida species and 6 Cryptococcus neoformans strains), and 746 isolates of Candida species (702 isolates, 13 species) and 44 isolates of C. neoformans against fluconazole. Excellent essential agreement (EA) (within 2 dilutions) between the reference and Vitek 2 MICs was observed for fluconazole and Candida species (94.0%). The EA was lower for fluconazole and C. neoformans at 86.4%. The mean times to a result with the Vitek 2 test were 9.1 h for Candida species and 12.1 h for C. neoformans. Categorical agreement (CA) between the two methods was assessed by using the new species-specific CBPs. For less common species without fluconazole CBPs, the epidemiological cutoff values (ECVs) were used to differentiate wild-type (WT; MIC, ≤ ECV) from non-WT (MIC, >ECV) strains. The CAs between the two methods were 92.0% for Candida species (0.3% very major errors [VME] and 2.6% major errors [ME]) and 84.1% for C. neoformans (4.5% VME and 11.4% ME). The updated Vitek 2 AF03 IUO yeast susceptibility system is comparable to the CLSI BMD reference method for testing the susceptibility of clinically important yeasts to fluconazole when using the new (lower) CBPs and ECVs.

Multicenter study of anidulafungin and micafungin MIC distributions and epidemiological cutoff values for eight Candida species and the CLSI M27-A3 broth microdilution method.

Since epidemiological cutoff values (ECVs) using CLSI MICs from multiple laboratories are not available for Candida spp. and the echinocandins, we established ECVs for anidulafungin and micafungin on the basis of wild-type (WT) MIC distributions (for organisms in a species-drug combination with no detectable acquired resistance mechanisms) for 8,210 Candida albicans, 3,102 C. glabrata, 3,976 C. parapsilosis, 2,042 C. tropicalis, 617 C. krusei, 258 C. lusitaniae, 234 C. guilliermondii, and 131 C. dubliniensis isolates. CLSI broth microdilution MIC data gathered from 15 different laboratories in Canada, Europe, Mexico, Peru, and the United States were aggregated to statistically define ECVs. ECVs encompassing 97.5% of the statistically modeled population for anidulafungin and micafungin were, respectively, 0.12 and 0.03 µg/ml for C. albicans, 0.12 and 0.03 µg/ml for C. glabrata, 8 and 4 µg/ml for C. parapsilosis, 0.12 and 0.06 µg/ml for C. tropicalis, 0.25 and 0.25 µg/ml for C. krusei, 1 and 0.5 µg/ml for C. lusitaniae, 8 and 2 µg/ml for C. guilliermondii, and 0.12 and 0.12 µg/ml for C. dubliniensis. Previously reported single and multicenter ECVs defined in the present study were quite similar or within 1 2-fold dilution of each other. For a collection of 230 WT isolates (no fks mutations) and 51 isolates with fks mutations, the species-specific ECVs for anidulafungin and micafungin correctly classified 47 (92.2%) and 51 (100%) of the fks mutants, respectively, as non-WT strains. These ECVs may aid in detecting non-WT isolates with reduced susceptibility to anidulafungin and micafungin due to fks mutations.

Seasonality of staphylococcal infections.

Characterization of seasonal variation of Staphylococcus aureus is important in understanding the epidemiology of, and designing preventive strategies against this highly virulent and ever-evolving pathogen. In this review, we summarize the findings of epidemiological studies that have evaluated seasonality in S. aureus colonization and infection. Although most studies published to date are methodologically weak, some seasonal variation in the occurrence of S. aureus infection appears to exist, particularly an association of warm-weather months with S. aureus skin and soft-tissue infections. We highlight the limitations of the published literature, and provide suggestions for future studies on this topic.

Progress in antifungal susceptibility testing of Candida spp. by use of Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute broth microdilution methods, 2010 to 2012.

Antifungal susceptibility testing of Candida has been standardized and refined and now may play a useful role in managing Candida infections. Important new developments include validation of 24-h reading times for all antifungal agents and the establishment of species-specific epidemiological cutoff values (ECVs) for the systemically active antifungal agents and both common and uncommon species of Candida. The clinical breakpoints (CBPs) for fluconazole, voriconazole, and the echinocandins have been revised to provide species-specific interpretive criteria for the six most common species. The revised CBPs not only are predictive of clinical outcome but also provide a more sensitive means of identifying those strains with acquired or mutational resistance mechanisms. This brief review serves as an update on the new developments in the antifungal susceptibility testing of Candida spp. using Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) broth microdilution (BMD) methods.

Comparison of the Sensititre YeastOne colorimetric antifungal panel with CLSI microdilution for antifungal susceptibility testing of the echinocandins against Candida spp., using new clinical breakpoints and epidemiological cutoff values.

A commercially prepared dried colorimetric microdilution panel (Sensititre Yeast One, TREK Diagnostic Systems, Cleveland, OH, USA) was compared in 3 different laboratories with the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) reference microdilution method by testing 2 quality control strains, 25 reproducibility strains, and 404 isolates of Candida spp. against anidulafungin, caspofungin, and micafungin. Reference CLSI BMD MIC end points and YeastOne colorimetric end points were read after 24 h of incubation. Excellent (100%) essential agreement (within 2 dilutions) between the reference and colorimetric MICs was observed. Categorical agreement (CA) between the 2 methods was assessed using the new species-specific clinical breakpoints (CBPs): susceptible (S), ≤0.25 µg/mL; intermediate (I), 0.5 µg/mL; and resistant (R), ≥1 µg/mL, for C. albicans, C. tropicalis, and C. krusei, and ≤2 µg/mL (S), 4 µg/mL (I), and ≥8 µg/mL (R) for C. parapsilosis and all 3 echinocandins. The new CBPs for anidulafungin and caspofungin and C. glabrata are ≤0.12 µg/mL (S), 0.25 µg/mL (I), and ≥0.5 µg/mL (R), whereas those for micafungin are ≤0.06 µg/mL (S), 0.12 µg/mL (I), and ≥0.25 µg/mL (R). Due to the lack of CBPs for any of the echinocandins and C. lusitaniae, the epidemiological cutoff values (ECVs) were used for this species to categorize the isolates as wild-type (WT; MIC ≤ECV) and non-WT (MIC >ECV), respectively, for anidulafungin (≤2 µg/mL/>2 µg/mL), caspofungin (≤1 µg/mL/>1 µg/mL), and micafungin (≤0.5 µg/mL/>0.5 µg/mL). CA ranged from 93.6% (caspofungin) to 99.6% (micafungin) with less than 1% very major or major errors. The YeastOne colorimetric method remains comparable to the CLSI BMD reference method for testing the susceptibility of Candida spp. to the echinocandins when using the new (lower) CBPs and ECVs. Further study using defined fks mutant strains of Candida is warranted.

Prevalence, antibiotic resistance and molecular characterisation of Staphylococcus aureus in pigs at agricultural fairs in the USA.

Fairs and petting zoos have been associated with outbreaks of zoonotic disease. Previously, the presence of meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) was documented in commercial pigs; therefore, it was hypothesised that antibiotic-resistant S aureus may also occur in pigs exhibited at agricultural fairs. To test this hypothesis, 157 pigs were swabbed at two state fairs in 2008 to 2009. Both nares were sampled and cultures were grown in enrichment broth, then plated onto selective MRSA plates and blood plates. S aureus was confirmed using phenotypic and molecular methods, and was analysed using spa typing, gene-specific polymerase chain reaction and antibiotic susceptibility testing. The presence of S aureus was confirmed in samples collected from pigs exhibited at USA pig shows. Twenty-five of 157 (15.9 per cent) samples were positive for S aureus. Two isolates (8 per cent) were resistant to meticillin; 23/25 (92 per cent), 14/25 (56 per cent) and 15/25 (60 per cent) were resistant to tetracycline, erythromycin and clindamycin, respectively. spa typing revealed multiple isolates of spa type t034 (9/25, 36 per cent) and t337 (7/25, 28 per cent) and singletons of t002, t209, t526, t1236, t1334, t1683, t3075, t5784 and t5883. These results verify the presence of antibiotic-resistant S aureus in pigs exhibited at USA fairs, suggesting that pigs are a potential reservoir for S aureus within this environment.

Wild-type MIC distributions and epidemiological cutoff values for amphotericin B, flucytosine, and itraconazole and Candida spp. as determined by CLSI broth microdilution.

Clinical breakpoints (CBPs) and epidemiological cutoff values (ECVs) have been established for several Candida spp. and the newer triazoles and echinocandins but are not yet available for older antifungal agents, such as amphotericin B, flucytosine, or itraconazole. We determined species-specific ECVs for amphotericin B (AMB), flucytosine (FC) and itraconazole (ITR) for eight Candida spp. (30,221 strains) using isolates from 16 different laboratories in Brazil, Canada, Europe, and the United States, all tested by the CLSI reference microdilution method. The calculated 24- and 48-h ECVs expressed in µg/ml (and the percentages of isolates that had MICs less than or equal to the ECV) for AMB, FC, and ITR, respectively, were 2 (99.8)/2 (99.2), 0.5 (94.2)/1 (91.4), and 0.12 (95.0)/0.12 (92.9) for C. albicans; 2 (99.6)/2 (98.7), 0.5 (98.0)/0.5 (97.5), and 2 (95.2)/4 (93.5) for C. glabrata; 2 (99.7)/2 (97.3), 0.5 (98.7)/0.5 (97.8), and 05. (99.7)/0.5 (98.5) for C. parapsilosis; 2 (99.8)/2 (99.2), 0.5 (93.0)/1 (90.5), and 0.5 (97.8)/0.5 (93.9) for C. tropicalis; 2 (99.3)/4 (100.0), 32 (99.4)/32 (99.3), and 1 (99.0)/2 (100.0) for C. krusei; 2 (100.0)/4 (100.0), 0.5 (95.3)/1 (92.9), and 0.5 (95.8)/0.5 (98.1) for C. lusitaniae; -/2 (100.0), 0.5 (98.8)/0.5 (97.7), and 0.25 (97.6)/0.25 (96.9) for C. dubliniensis; and 2 (100.0)/2 (100.0), 1 (92.7)/-, and 1 (100.0)/2 (100.0) for C. guilliermondii. In the absence of species-specific CBP values, these wild-type (WT) MIC distributions and ECVs will be useful for monitoring the emergence of reduced susceptibility to these well-established antifungal agents.

Clinical breakpoints for the echinocandins and Candida revisited: integration of molecular, clinical, and microbiological data to arrive at species-specific interpretive criteria.

The CLSI established clinical breakpoints (CBPs) for caspofungin (CSF), micafungin (MCF) and anidulafungin (ANF) versus Candida. The same CBP (susceptible (S): MIC ≤ 2 mcg/ml; non-S: MIC > 2 mcg/ml) was applied to all echinocandins and species. More data now allow reassessment of these CBPs. We examined cases of echinocandin failure where both MICs and fks mutations were assessed; wild type (WT) MICs and epidemiological cutoff values (ECVs) for a large Candida collection; molecular analysis of fks hotspots for Candida with known MICs; and pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic (PK/PD) data. We applied these findings to propose new species-specific CBPs for echinocandins and Candida. Of 18 candidiasis cases refractory to echinocandins and with fks mutations, 28% (CSF), 58% (ANF) and 66% (MCF) had MICs in the S category using CBP of ≤ 2 mcg/ml, while 0-8% would be S using CBP of ≤ 0.25 mcg/ml. WT MIC distributions revealed ECV ranges of 0.03-0.25 mcg/ml for all major species except C. parapsilosis (1-4 mcg/ml) and C. guilliermondii (4-16 mcg/ml). Among Candida tested for fks mutations, only 15.7-45.1% of 51 mutants were detected using the CBP for NS of >2 mcg/ml. In contrast, a cutoff of >0.25 mcg/ml for C. albicans, C. tropicalis, C. krusei, and C. dubliniensis detected 85.6% (MCF) to 95.2% (CSF) of 21 mutant strains. Likewise, a cutoff of >0.12 mcg/ml for ANF and CSF and of >0.06 mcg/ml for MCF detected 93% (ANF) to 97% (CSF, MCF) of 30 mutant strains of C. glabrata. These data, combined with PK/PD considerations, support CBPs of ≤ 0.25 mcg/ml (S), 0.5 mcg/ml (I), ≥ 1 (R) for CSF/MCF/ANF and C. albicans, C. tropicalis and C. krusei and ≤ 2 mcg/ml (S), 4 mcg/ml (I), and ≥ 8 mcg/ml (R) for these agents and C. parapsilosis. The CBPs for ANF and CSF and C. glabrata are ≤ 0.12 mcg/ml (S), 0.25 mcg/ml (I), and ≥ 0.5 mcg/ml (R), whereas those for MCF are ≤ 0.06 mcg/ml (S), 0.12 mcg/ml (I), and ≥ 0.25 mcg/ml (R). New, species-specific CBPs for Candida and the echinocandins are more sensitive to detect emerging resistance associated with fks mutations, and better able to predict risk for clinical failure.

Validation of 24-hour posaconazole and voriconazole MIC readings versus the CLSI 48-hour broth microdilution reference method: application of epidemiological cutoff values to results from a global Candida antifungal surveillance program.

We performed 24- and 48-h MIC determinations of posaconazole and voriconazole against more than 16,000 clinical isolates of Candida species. By using the 24- and 48-h epidemiological cutoff values (ECVs), the categorical agreement between the 24-h and reference 48-h broth microdilution results ranged from 97.1% (C. parapsilosis and voriconazole) to 99.8% (C. krusei and voriconazole), with 0.0 to 2.9% very major discrepancies (VMD). The essential agreement (within 2 log(2) dilutions) between the 24- and 48-h results was 99.6% for both posaconazole and voriconazole. The MIC results obtained for both posaconazole and voriconazole after only 24 h of incubation may be used to determine the susceptibilities of Candida spp. to these important antifungal agents. The applications of ECVs to this large collection of Candida isolates suggests the potential to develop 24-h species-specific clinical breakpoints for both posaconazole and voriconazole.

Comparison of the broth microdilution (BMD) method of the European Committee on Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing with the 24-hour CLSI BMD method for testing susceptibility of Candida species to fluconazole, posaconazole, and voriconazole by use of epidemiological cutoff values.

The antifungal broth microdilution (BMD) method of the European Committee on Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing (EUCAST) was compared with CLSI BMD method M27-A3 for fluconazole, posaconazole, and voriconazole susceptibility testing of 1,056 isolates of Candida. The isolates were obtained in 2009 from more than 60 centers worldwide and included 560 isolates of C. albicans, 175 of C. glabrata, 162 of C. parapsilosis, 124 of C. tropicalis, and 35 of C. krusei. The overall essential agreement (EA) between EUCAST and CLSI results ranged from 96.9% (voriconazole) to 98.6% (fluconazole). The categorical agreement (CA) between methods and species of Candida was assessed using previously determined epidemiological cutoff values (ECVs). The ECVs (expressed as µg/ml) for fluconazole, posaconazole, and voriconazole, respectively, were as follows: 0.12, 0.06, and 0.03 for C. albicans; 32, 2, and 0.5 for C. glabrata; 2, 0.25, and 0.12 for C. parapsilosis; 2, 0.12, and 0.06 for C. tropicalis; 64, 0.5, and 0.5 for C. krusei. Excellent CA was observed for all comparisons between the EUCAST and CLSI results for fluconazole, posaconazole, and voriconazole, respectively, for each species: 98.9%, 93.6%, and 98.6% for C. albicans; 96.0%, 98.9%, and 93.7% for C. glabrata; 90.8%, 98.1%, and 98.1% for C. parapsilosis; 99.2%, 99.2%, and 96.8% for C. tropicalis; 97.1%, 97.1%, and 97.1% for C. krusei. We demonstrate high levels of EA and CA between the CLSI and EUCAST BMD methods for testing of triazoles against Candida when the MICs were determined after 24 h and ECVs were used to differentiate wild-type (WT) from non-WT strains. These results provide additional data in favor of the harmonization of these two methods.

Comparison of the broth microdilution methods of the European Committee on Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing and the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute for testing itraconazole, posaconazole, and voriconazole against Aspergillus isolates.

We compared EUCAST and CLSI antifungal susceptibility testing methods for itraconazole, posaconazole, and voriconazole by testing 245 Aspergillus clinical isolates. The essential agreement (EA) between methods was excellent: 100% (itraconazole), 98.4% (posaconazole), and 99.6% (voriconazole) assessing EA at ±2 dilutions and 99.6% (itraconazole), 87.7% (posaconazole), and 96.3% (voriconazole) at ±1 dilution.

Wild-type MIC distributions and epidemiological cutoff values for posaconazole and voriconazole and Candida spp. as determined by 24-hour CLSI broth microdilution.

We tested 16,191 strains of Candida against posaconazole and voriconazole, using the CLSI M27-A3 broth microdilution (BMD) method (24-h incubation), in order to define wild-type (WT) populations and epidemiological cutoff values (ECVs). From 2001 to 2009, 8,619 isolates of Candida albicans, 2,415 isolates of C. glabrata, 2,278 isolates of C. parapsilosis, 1,895 isolates of C. tropicalis, 508 isolates of C. krusei, 205 isolates of C. lusitaniae, 177 isolates of C. guilliermondii, and 93 isolates of C. kefyr were obtained from over 100 centers worldwide. The modal MICs (µg/ml) for posaconazole and voriconazole, respectively, were as follows: for C. albicans, 0.016 and 0.007; for C. glabrata, 0.5 and 0.06; for C. parapsilosis, 0.06 and 0.007; for C. tropicalis, 0.03 and 0.015; for C. krusei, 0.25 and 0.12; for C. lusitaniae, 0.03 and 0.007; for C. guilliermondii, 0.12 and 0.03; and for C. kefyr, 0.06 and 0.007. The ECVs (µg/ml [% of isolates that had MICs equal to or less than the ECV]) for posaconazole and voriconazole, respectively, were as follows: 0.06 (98.5) and 0.03 (98.9) for C. albicans, 2 (96.2) and 0.5 (90.4%) for C. glabrata, 0.25 (99.3) and 0.12 (97.9) for C. parapsilosis, 0.12 (97.6) and 0.06 (97.2) for C. tropicalis, 0.5 (99.8) and 0.5 (99.4) for C. krusei, 0.12 (95.6) and 0.03 (96.6) for C. lusitaniae, 0.5 (98.9) and 0.25 (98.3) for C. guilliermondii, and 0.25 (100.0) and 0.015 (100.0) for C. kefyr. In the absence of clinical breakpoints (CBPs) for posaconazole, these WT distributions and ECVs will be useful in surveillance for emergence of reduced susceptibility to posaconazole among Candida spp. Whereas a CBP for susceptibility of ≤ 1 µg/ml has been established for voriconazole and all species of Candida, it is notable that ECVs for this agent range from 10- to >100-fold lower than the CBP, depending on the species of Candida. The CBP is inadequate in detecting the emergence of voriconazole resistance among most Candida species encountered clinically. The CBPs for voriconazole should be reassessed, with consideration for development of species-specific CBPs.

Use of epidemiological cutoff values to examine 9-year trends in susceptibility of Candida species to anidulafungin, caspofungin, and micafungin.

The CLSI clinical breakpoint (CBP) for echinocandin susceptibility (S; MICs of ≤ 2 µg/ml) may classify isolates with acquired resistance (R) mutations as susceptible. Epidemiological cutoff values (ECVs) have been established to distinguish wild-type (WT) Candida strains from those that may exhibit R mutations. The CLSI-developed ECVs for anidulafungin, caspofungin, and micafungin were applied to 15,269 isolates of Candida spp. collected from over 100 centers worldwide between 2001 and 2009 to determine the frequency of non-WT strains of each species. The collection included 8,378 isolates of Candida albicans, 2,352 isolates of C. glabrata, 2,195 isolates of C. parapsilosis, 1,841 isolates of C. tropicalis, and 503 isolates of C. krusei. The mean percentages of non-WT isolates per year for anidulafungin, caspofungin, and micafungin, respectively, were as follows: for C. albicans, 0.3, 0.1, and 2.1; for C. glabrata, 0.8, 1.3, and 1.6; for C. parapsilosis, 0.0, 1.5, and 0.5; for C. tropicalis, 0.9, 0.7, and 0.9; and for C. krusei, 0.5, 6.4, and 3.5. We noted increases in the percentage of non-WT isolates, from 0.5% (2001) to 3.1% (2009) for caspofungin and C. parapsilosis, from 0.4% (2004) to 1.8% (2009) for anidulafungin and C. glabrata, from 2.4% (2004) to 5.7% (2009) for micafungin and C. krusei, and from 0.0% (2004) to 3.1% (2009) for micafungin and C. parapsilosis. No trends were noted for any species and drug when we used the CBP. Echinocandin CBPs are insensitive for detecting emerging R. Although uncommon, decreased S among Candida isolates was observed for each of the echinocandins and varied by species. Using ECVs is important in determining R trends among echinocandins and Candida.

Use of epidemiological cutoff values to examine 9-year trends in susceptibility of Aspergillus species to the triazoles.

In the absence of clinical breakpoints, epidemiological cutoff values (ECVs) have been established to distinguish wild-type (WT) isolates of Aspergillus spp. from those that may harbor resistance mutations. Recently, the CLSI has developed ECVs for triazoles (itraconazole, posaconazole, and voriconazole) and common Aspergillus species. We applied the triazole ECVs to 1,789 Aspergillus isolates collected from 63 centers worldwide from 2001 to 2009 to determine the frequency of non-WT strains of each species. Temporal trends were evaluated for Aspergillus fumigatus and Aspergillus flavus over the 9-year period for each drug. The collection included 1,312 isolates of A. fumigatus, 235 of A. flavus, 162 of Aspergillus niger, 64 of Aspergillus terreus, and 15 of Aspergillus versicolor. Using the ECVs, the percentages of non-WT isolates for itraconazole, posaconazole, and voriconazole, respectively, were as follows: A. fumigatus (2.0%, 3.5%, and 1.4%), A. flavus (0.8%, 5.1%, and 1.7%), A. niger (17.3%, 3.7%, and 0.6%), A. terreus (0.0%, 1.6%, and 3.2%), and A. versicolor (6.3%, 0.0%, and 0.0%). Among 49 Aspergillus isolates for which itraconazole MICs were >2 µg/ml, the posaconazole and voriconazole MICs were greater than the ECVs for 14 and 12 isolates, respectively. The percentages of isolates for which MICs were greater than the ECVs ranged from 1.1 to 5.7% for posaconazole, 0.0 to 1.6% for voriconazole, and 0.7 to 4.0% for itraconazole. There was no consistent trend toward decreased susceptibility for any triazole and A. fumigatus or A. flavus over time. Decreased susceptibility among Aspergillus spp. was observed for each of the extended-spectrum triazoles and varied by species over the 9-year study period.

Wild-type MIC distributions, epidemiological cutoff values and species-specific clinical breakpoints for fluconazole and Candida: time for harmonization of CLSI and EUCAST broth microdilution methods.

BACKGROUND: Both the Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) and the European Committee on Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing (EUCAST) have MIC clinical breakpoints (CBPs) for fluconazole (FLU) and Candida. EUCAST CBPs are species-specific, and apply only to C. albicans, C. tropicalis and C. parapsilosis, while CLSI CBPs apply to all species. We reassessed the CLSI CBPs for FLU and Candida in light of recent data. METHODS: We examined (1) molecular mechanisms of resistance and cross-resistance profiles, (2) wild-type (WT) MICs and epidemiological cutoff values (ECVs) for FLU and major Candida species by both CLSI and EUCAST methods, (3) determination of essential (EA) and categorical agreement (CA) between CLSI and EUCAST methods, (4) correlation of MICs with outcomes from previously published data using CLSI and EUCAST methods, and (5) pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic considerations. We applied these findings to propose new species-specific CLSI CBPs for FLU and Candida. RESULTS: WT distributions from large collections of Candida revealed similar ECVs by both CLSI and EUCAST methods (0.5-1 mcg/ml for C. albicans, 2 mcg/ml for C. parapsilosis and C. tropicalis, 32 mcg/ml for C. glabrata, and 64-128 for C. krusei). Comparison of CLSI and EUCAST MICs reveal EA and CA of 95% and 96%, respectively. Datasets correlating CLSI and EUCAST FLU MICs with outcomes revealed decreased response rates when MICs were > 4 mcg/ml for C. albicans, C. tropicalis and C. parapsilosis, and > 16 mcg/ml for C. glabrata. CONCLUSIONS: Adjusted CLSI CBPs for FLU and C. albicans, C. parapsilosis, C. tropicalis (S, ≤ 2 mcg/ml; SDD, 4 mcg/ml; R, ≥ 8 mcg/ml), and C. glabrata (SDD, ≤ 32 mcg/ml; R, ≥ 64 mcg/ml) should be more sensitive for detecting emerging resistance among common Candida species and provide consistency with EUCAST CBPs.