SURVEILLANCE OF TREATED AND UNTREATED FUNGURIA IN A UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL

Study Objective. To determine the influence of treatment on the microb iologic outcome of funguria. Design. Retrospective case series. Settin g. A 300-bed tertiary care teaching hospital in a large metropolitan a rea. Subjects. 141 hospitalized patients, 18 years of age or older, wi th at least one urine culture positive (greater-than-or-equal-to 10(2) cfu/ml) for fungi. Interventions. Retrospective review of medical rec ords to determine the microbiologic outcome of funguria. Main Results. Funguria developed rapidly in individuals with known predisposing fac tors. Urinalysis did not routinely detect the presence of fungi or pyu ria. Symptoms such as fever, dysuria, and frequency were generally abs ent. Funguria persisted whether it was due to Candida albicans or nona lbicans species. There were no statistical differences in the microbio logic outcomes of treated and untreated funguria. Conclusions. Funguri a is a rapidly developing, often benign and persistent process. Minimi zing predisposing risks, such as removing indwelling urinary catheters , is beneficial in its management. Pharmacologic treatment of funguria due to C. albicans or non-albicans species does not influence the mic robiologic outcome.