Current status and fluconazole treatment of pelvis fungal gynecological infections

The incidence of opportunistic fungal infections has recently been increasi ng in many clinical fields. Fluconazole is commonly used against systemic f ungal infections. The present study was undertaken to investigate the curre nt status and the efficacy of fluconazole in pelvic fungal gynecological in fections. Thirty-eight patients aged 36-72 years old diagnosed with pelvic peritonitis with positive fungal culture in pelvic ascites were enrolled in this study and given fluconazole treatment. Forty-two pathogens were isola ted from the 38 assessable patients. The predominant pathogen was Candida a lbicans with an incidence of 61.9% (26/42). Others included non-albicans Ca ndida species amounting to 38.1% (16/42): 19.0% (8/42) Candida glabrata, 7. 1% (3/42) Candida tropicalis, 7.1% (3/42) Candida parapsilosis and 4.8% (2/ 42) Candida krusei. The clinical cure rate at the end of fluconazole treatm ent was assessed as 30/38 (78.9%), and the fungal eradication rate as 26/42 (61.9%). Each rate was 29/38 (76.3%) and 26/42 (61.9%), respectively, at 1 week after the treatment, while the eradication rate of C. albicans and no n-albicans species was 20/26 (76.9%) and 6/16 (37.5%), respectively. There was no adverse effect except for slight elevations of GOT, GPT and LDH obse rved in 1 patient (2.6%), which returned to normal after the treatment. It seems there may be an increasing trend of non-albicans species in pelvic fu ngal gynecological infection, against which fluconazole appears to be rathe r effective. Copyright (C) 2000 S. Karger AG, Basel.