Species distribution and antifungal susceptibility profile of <i>Candida spp</i> isolated from urine of hospitalized patients in Dschang District Hospital, Cameroon

Abstract

Candiduria refers to the presence of Candida species in urine, It is a common nosocomial infection afflicting the urinary tract. The aim of our study was to determine the prevalence of candiduria in hospitalized patients in Dschang District Hospital, and to evaluate the susceptibility patterns of Candida spp isolated from some commonly used antifungal drugs. Midstream urine samples were collected from 122 hospitalized patients at the Dschang District Hospital, then speciation of Candida was done based on colony colour on CHROMagar Candida medium. Antifungal susceptibility testing of the isolates was performed by the Broth dilution method. A total of 51 isolates of Candida species were recovered from 122 urine samples. Candida albicans was the most prevalent species 41.2% (21 isolates), followed by C. parapsilosis (27.5%), C. glabrata (17.6%), C. krusei (7.8%) and C. tropicalis (5.9%). Antifungal susceptibility test indicated that 100% and 96.1% of the Candida isolates were resistant to Amphotericin B and Nystatin respectively. Resistance varied depending on the species and the respective antifungal agents. We can conclude that candiduria is relatively common in hospitalized patients. The isolates were very resistant to polyenes (amphotericin B and nystatin) and most isolates were sensitive to azoles. Therefore, the species identification of Candida isolates along with their antifungal susceptibility pattern can help the clinicians in adequate treatment of the patients with candiduria.

Keywords: Candiduria, Candida spp, Hospitalized patients, Antifungal susceptibility.