Candida utilis as an emerging rare cause of septicemia among neonates and children in Western Uttar Pradesh: A case series

Background and purpose: Candida utilis is a recently emerging nosocomial fungal pathogen. Candidemia is the fourth most prevalent cause of bloodstream Infections with mortality rates varying from 5-71%.

Materials and methods: This was a retrospective study conducted at Uttar Pradesh University of Medical Sciences, Etawah, India, from September 2023 to February 2024. Rapid identification was performed by VITEK® 2 (BioMérieux, France) and 18 out of 20 C. utilis cases were verified by matrix assisted laser desorption ionization-time of flight mass spectrometry (BioMerieux, France). Susceptibility testing was conducted by VITEK® 2 appropriate Card.

Results: Candida utilis was mainly observed between 0-9-month-old neonates, except one case of 11 years old. The extended Intensive Care Unit stay and prior antibiotic use were common risk factors in all cases. They were pan susceptible to each of the tested antifungal medications, and 6 out of 10 cases showed positive clinical response after antifungal treatment.

Conclusion: Early identification and prompt treatment favors a good clinical outcome. The current research primarily aimed to elaborate on the speciation, incidence, and antifungal susceptibility testing of C. utilis at a tertiary care center.