A NOSOCOMIAL CLUSTER OF CANDIDA-INCONSPICUA INFECTIONS IN PATIENTS WITH HEMATOLOGICAL MALIGNANCIES

Candida inconspicua was recovered from three patients with hematologic al malignancies. Two patients had intravenous-catheter-associated fung emia, whereas the third had fungal hepatitis. The three cases of infec tion occurred over a period of 1 month in patients staying in adjacent single rooms. In vitro susceptibility testing of fungal strains showe d all isolates to be resistant to fluconazole, with MICs greater than 32 mu g/ml. All of the strains had identical DNA restriction profiles and randomly amplified polymorphic DNA fingerprints. These data sugges t a nosocomially acquired infection emanating from a common source wit hin the hospital environment.