CDC and fungal diseases : why are fungal diseases a public health issue?

Abstract

Fungal diseases pose an important threat to public health for several reasons.\ue2\u20ac\ua2 Opportunistic infections such as cryptococcosis and aspergillosis are becoming increasingly problematic as the number of people with weakened immune systems rises. This group includes cancer patients, transplant recipients, other people taking medications that weaken the immune system, and people with HIV/AIDS.\ue2\u20ac\ua2 Hospital-associated infections such as candidemia are a leading cause of bloodstream infections in the United States. Advancements and changes in healthcare practices can provide opportunities for new and drug-resistant fungi to emerge in hospital settings.\ue2\u20ac\ua2 Community-acquired infections such as coccidioidomycosis (Valley fever), blastomycosis, and histoplasmosis, are caused by fungi that live in the environment in specific geographic areas. These fungi are sensitive to changes in temperature and moisture, and we don\ue2\u20ac\u2122t know how long-term climate change may be affecting their growth and distribution.CS257980Publication date from document properties.fungal-factsheet-508c.pd