Temporal assessment of Candida risk factors in the surgical intensive careunit

Hypothesis: Risk factors for Candida infection in surgical intensive care u nits (SICUs) change over time. Risk factor progression may influence Candid a colonization and infection. Design: Multicenter cohort survey. Setting: Three urban teaching institutions. Patients: A total of 301 consecutively admitted patients in SICUs for 5 or more days. Main Outcome Measures: Assessment of patients on SICU days 1, 3, 4, 6, and 8 and SICU discharge for risk factors, Candida colonization, and antifungal use. Candida colonization status was categorized as noncolonized (NC), loc ally colonized (LC) if 1 site was involved, and disseminated infection (DI) if 2 or more sites or candidemia were involved. Results: The most frequent risk factors in the 301 patients enrolled were p resence of peripheral and central intravenous catheters, bladder catheters, mechanical ventilation, and lack of enteral or intravenous nutrition. Earl y risk factors included total parenteral nutrition or central catheter at S ICU day 1 and previous SICU admissions or surgical procedures. Peak number of risk factors (mean SD) were as follows: 7.2 +/- 2.6 in NC (n=229), 9.2 /- 2.3 in LC (n = 45), and 9.2 +/- 2.6 in DI (n = 27). These numbers were r eached at day 8 in the NC and LC groups and day 4 in the DI group. The LC a nd DI groups had more risk factors on each SICU day than the NC group and l onger median SICU length of stay (28 days in the DI group vs 11 and 19 days in the NC and LC groups, respectively). Antifungal therapy, while used mos t frequently in the DI group, was initiated later for this group than in NC and LC groups. Conclusions: Risk factors for Candida infection in SICU patients change ove r time. Patients with DI demonstrate a greater number of and more rapid inc rease in risk factors than patients in the LC and NC groups. Presence of ea rly risk factors at the time of SICU admission, a high incidence of risk fa ctors, or a rapid increase in risk factors should prompt clinicians to obta in surveillance fungal cultures and consider empirical antifungal therapy.