The treatment of Candida albicans shunt infections

Cerebrospinal fluid shunting procedures are performed for the treatment of hydrocephalus. Infection of ventriculoperitoneal shunts may create signific ant clinical management issues in these patients. The majority of these inf ections are bacterial, but occasionally a Candida albicans shunt infection may occur. We report two patients who acquired Candida albicans shunt infec tion and discuss their clinical presentation, management, and successful ou tcome. The treatment with or without removal of the shunt and the correct d osage and route of administration of the antifungal agents is not well docu mented. The dilemma of treatment of Candida albicans shunt infections in th ese patients and review of the limited literature on this subject are the s ubjects of this report.