SinoXivSpecies Distribution and Antifungal Susceptibility Profiles of Yeast Bloodstream Isolates: A Six-Year Multicentre Surveillance study in Colombia
Abstract
Purpose Invasive fungal infections, particularly candidemia, are a major cause of morbidity and mortality in hospitalised patients, yet contemporary multicentre data on species distribution and antifungal resistance in Colombia remain limited. This study aimed to characterise the species distribution and in vitro antifungal susceptibility of yeast bloodstream isolates across a network of Colombian hospitals over a six-year period (2019–2024).Methods A retrospective, laboratory-based analysis was conducted on aggregated data from 23 participating hospitals across Colombia, primarily located in Bogotá. Yeast isolates from blood cultures were identified using the VITEK® 2 system. Antifungal susceptibility testing for fluconazole, voriconazole, amphotericin B, and echinocandins was performed on Candida albicans, C. parapsilosis, and C. tropicalis isolates using the VITEK® 2 AST-YS08 card. Data were stratified by clinical service: adult intensive care unit (ICU), adult wards, paediatric ICU, neonatal ICU, and paediatric wards.Results A total of 1,642 yeast isolates were recovered. The most prevalent species were C. albicans (42%), C. parapsilosis (24%), C. tropicalis (11%), C. glabrata (7%), and C. auris (3%). In adult populations, C. albicans predominated, whereas C. parapsilosis was the most common species in paediatric services. Global fluconazole resistance was 19%, largely driven by C. parapsilosis, which exhibited an overall resistance rate of 35% (exceeding 40% in some clinical services). Resistance to voriconazole and amphotericin B was low (< 5%), and echinocandin resistance was exceedingly rare.Conclusion This multicentre study reveals a distinct epidemiological divergence between adult and paediatric patients, with C. parapsilosis dominating in paediatric settings. The substantial fluconazole resistance, driven primarily by C. parapsilosis, together with the emergence of C. auris, underscores the urgent need for sustained surveillance and species-directed antifungal stewardship programmes across Colombian hospital networks
Citation Information
@article{andresceballosgarzon2026,
title={Species Distribution and Antifungal Susceptibility Profiles of Yeast Bloodstream Isolates: A Six-Year Multicentre Surveillance study in Colombia},
author={Andres Ceballos-Garzon and Nicolas Beltran and Valeri Saenz and Luz-Angela Pescador and Diego Josa and Luisa-Fernanda Rodriguez and Rosalba Quintero-Munoz and Ivan-Felipe Gutierrez and Maria Pilar Torres-Navarrete and Lilia Arevalo and Diana P Cely-Ladino and Gloria Cortes and Luisa F. Ortiz-Torres and Rafael Pelufo and Nella Sanchez and Leidy Bogota and Claudia R. Sierra-Parada and Laura-Daniela Méndez and Maria J. Jimenez-A and Lizeth Paola Gutierrez and Jorge-Alberto Cortes and Aura-Lucia Leal},
journal={European Journal of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases},
year={2026},
doi={https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-9349273/v1}
}
