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Hong Kong health officials have announced that they are trying to control the transmission of a communicable drug-resistant fungus, Candida auris. and that it has a fatality rate between 30 and 60%. “We are trying to control the fungus inside hospitals and nursing homes, so that we don’t transmitted to the community“Raymond Lai, director of infection control at the Hong Kong Hospital Authority, told local press on Friday.
Already detected 136 cases in 2020 (compared to 20 of 2019), mainly in public hospitals and nursing homes. Lai admits that the Covid-19 pandemic may have contributed to the dramatic increase in patients with the Candida auris fungus, as isolation equipment has only been available to treat patients with the new coronavirus.
Some hospitals do not have isolated rooms in the general wards, which means that having to place Candida auris patients in the corner of these rooms as a precaution, which can increase the chances of cross infection, ”said the director of infection control of the Hong Kong Hospital Authority.
Still, Hai says Candida auris patients will continue “Share team” in hospitals, but health authorities “intend to have separate teams for all patients and avoid cross-infection between them.” Although the situation is “worrying”, Lai emphasized that the number of cases remains low.
The age of the patients is between 21 and 101 years old and almost 80% of confirmed cases are over 60 years old. The disease is usually found in the oral cavity, digestive tract, and skin. Immunosuppressed patients, those who have undergone surgery or those who have been hospitalized for a long time are more susceptible to the fungus.
