In vitro susceptibility profile of 200 recent clinical isolates of Candida spp. to topical antifungal treatments of vulvovaginal candidiasis, the imidazoles and nystatin agents.

OBJECTIVE: Topical antifungal treatment of vulvovaginal candidiasis is widely recommended. The most commonly recommended topical antifungals (the imidazoles clotrimazole, miconazole and econazole and the polyene nystatin) have been on the market for more than 30 years. There are only a few recent data available on the susceptibility of different Candida species to these antifungals, especially of non-albicans Candida species which appear to be less responsive to treatment with imidazoles. The study aimed to determine the in vitro susceptibility profile of a large number of recent clinical isolates of Candida spp. to the most commonly recommended topical antifungals. MATERIALS AND METHODS: An antifungal susceptibility test was performed according to the CLSI M27-A3 broth microdilution method, and minimal inhibitory concentrations were determined for econazole, miconazole, clotrimazole and nystatin. RESULTS: The clinical isolates comprised of: 113 Candida albicans, 54 Candida glabrata, 11 Candida krusei, 11 Candida tropicalis and 11 Candida parapsilosis. The three azoles agents exhibited MIC90 values of 0.06 mg/L against C. albicans isolates, while nystatin exhibited a MIC90 of 4 mg/L. For non-albicans Candida isolates, MIC90 values ranged from 0.5 to 8 mg/L, from 1 to 4 mg/L and from 0.12 to 4 mg/L, for econazole, miconazole, clotrimazole, respectively. Nystatin MIC90 remained at 4 mg/L for all non-albicans Candida species tested. CONCLUSION: These results confirmed the susceptibility of C. albicans to the most frequently used topical agents and may support the use of alternative agents to imidazoles, such as nystatin, to treat vulvovaginal candidiasis caused by non-albicans Candida species.

Multicenter evaluation of a commercial PCR-enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay diagnostic kit (Onychodiag) for diagnosis of dermatophytic onychomycosis.

We prospectively evaluated a new PCR-enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit (Onychodiag; BioAdvance, France) for the diagnosis of dermatophytic onychomycosis by testing nail samples from 438 patients with suspected onychomycosis and from 108 healthy controls in three independent laboratories. In two laboratories, samples were collected by trained mycologists as close as possible to the lesions (proximal samples). In one laboratory, samples were collected by other physicians. All samples were processed by conventional mycological techniques and by Onychodiag, blindly to the mycological results. An additional distal sample, collected by clipping the nail plate, was obtained from 75 patients and tested with Onychodiag alone. In patients with culture-proven dermatophytic onychomycosis, the sensitivity of Onychodiag was 83.6% (87.9% including the gray zone) and ranged from 75 to 100% according to the laboratory and the sampling conditions. The specificity was 100% when healthy subjects were considered true negative controls. Onychodiag was positive on 68 patient samples that were sterile or yielded nondermatophyte species in culture. Based on the results of Onychodiag for mycologically proven positive samples and true-negative samples, these results were considered true positives, and the poor performance of mycology on these samples was attributed to inconvenient sampling conditions or to contaminants. When tested on distal samples, Onychodiag was positive in 49/53 (92%) cases of proven dermatophytic onychomycosis. Finally, with either proximal or distal samples, Onychodiag provided a diagnosis of dermatophytic onychomycosis within 24 to 48 h after sampling, and its sensitivity was close to that of mycological techniques applied to proximal samples.

Tinea pedis in European marathon runners.

BACKGROUND: Epidemiological studies suggest that 15% of the population in industrial countries suffer from tinea pedis (athlete's foot) and that persons who do sports are a high-risk population. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the responsibility of dermatophytes in interdigital lesions of the feet in European marathon runners and to identify associated risk factors. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Runners of the 14th Médoc Marathon (n = 147) were interviewed on risk factors for tinea pedis and underwent physical and mycological examinations. RESULTS: Interdigital lesions of the feet were found in 66 runners (45%). A dermatophyte was isolated in 45 runners (31%), 12 of whom were asymptomatic. Trichophyton interdigitale and T. rubrum accounted for 49% and 35.5%, respectively, of the cases of tinea pedis. Thirty-three (22%) of the 102 runners free of dermatophyte infection had lesions resembling those of tinea pedis. Increasing age and use of communal bathing facilities were predictive of T. rubrum culture. CONCLUSIONS: Marathon runners are at high risk for tinea pedis, but dermatophytes are responsible for only half of the foot lesions found in runners. The existence of asymptomatic carriers calls for prophylactic measures.