Uniform distribution of three Candida albicans microsatellite markers in two French ICU populations supports a lack of nosocomial cross-contamination
2006

Study of Candida albicans in French ICUs

Sample size: 60 publication 10 minutes Evidence: moderate

Author Information

Author(s): Eloy Odile, Marque Stéphanie, Botterel Françoise, Stephan François, Costa Jean-Marc, Lasserre Virginie, Bretagne Stéphane

Hypothesis

Is there a specific ecology for Candida albicans in different hospitals' ICUs?

Conclusion

The study found that each patient typically carries their own isolate of Candida albicans, indicating that nosocomial transmission is rare in ICUs.

Supporting Evidence

  • Among 36 patients, 26 had a specific multilocus genotype.
  • No statistically significant difference was observed in genotypic distributions between the two hospitals.
  • The time interval between hospitalizations for patients with common genotypes ranged from 13 to 78 days.

Takeaway

This study looked at patients in two hospitals to see if they got the same type of Candida yeast from each other. It turns out they usually don't share the same type.

Methodology

Patients were genotyped for Candida albicans using three polymorphic microsatellite markers and compared between two ICUs.

Potential Biases

Potential bias due to differences in patient populations and treatment protocols between the two hospitals.

Limitations

The study did not include a larger number of hospitals or ICUs for comparison.

Participant Demographics

Patients were adults over 18 years old, with a mix of medical and surgical conditions.

Statistical Information

Statistical Significance

p>0.05

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

10.1186/1471-2334-6-162

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