The remaining six cases were identified after August and are still under investigation. "It appears that C. auris arrived in the United States only in the past few years," Dr. Tom Chiller, Chief of the CDC's Mycotic Diseases Branch, said in a statement. He added that scientists are working to better understand the fungus so they can develop recommendations to protect those at risk.
‘Candida auris has high potential to cause outbreaks in healthcare facilities, and this deadly organism is difficult to identify using traditional laboratory biochemical methods.’
C. auris bloodstream infections have a 50 percent fatality rate in some countries, according to one study. Some strains of this yeast are multidrug-resistant and cannot be treated by the three major classes of antifungal medications. First reported in 2009 in Japan, cases have been recorded in South Korea, India, South Africa, Kuwait, Colombia, Venezuela, Pakistan and the United Kingdom.
"Experience outside the United States suggests that C. auris has high potential to cause outbreaks in healthcare facilities," the CDC notes on its website. Importantly, this deadly organism is difficult to identify using traditional laboratory biochemical methods.
Source: IANS
