122 C. auris cases found in the US: 6 updates from the CDC

Candida auris, the emerging multidrug-resistant fungus that the CDC director named a "catastrophic threat," has been isolated from 122 people in the U.S. as of May 12, according to the CDC.

Of those 122 cases, 77 are clinical cases found from swabs taken as part of routine patient care, and the remaining 45 were found through screening of close contacts of those 77 patients.

Here are six things to know from the CDC's latest C. auris report from Friday.

1. The 77 clinical cases were found in seven states: New York (53 cases), New Jersey (16), Illinois (four), Indiana (one), Maryland (one), Massachusetts (one) and Oklahoma (one).
   
   

2. Of the 77 clinical cases, the median age of affected patients was 77. Nearly all of the patients had multiple underlying medical conditions and extensive healthcare exposure, according to the report.
   
   

3. Thirty-five of the isolates have been tested for antifungal susceptibility. Of those, 30 were resistant to fluconazole, 15 were resistant to amphotericin B and one was resistant to echinocandins.
   
   

4. Most of the cases have epidemiologic links, researchers found. For instance, three cases in Illinois were linked to the same long-term care facility, and most of the cases in New York and New Jersey had overlapping stays at interconnected long-term care facilities and hospitals. Additionally, the case in Massachusetts was tied to the Illinois cases.
   
   

5. The C. auris isolates in each state were highly related to one another, but each state's isolates appear to come from different parts of the world. For instance, the Illinois isolates are similar to isolates from South America, isolates in New York were from South Asia. "These data suggest multiple introductions of C. auris into the United States followed by local transmission," according to the report.
   
   

6. The CDC currently recommends the following actions for C. auris colonized or infected patients:
   
   
   • Using Standard Precautions and Contact Precautions
   • Putting the patient in a private room
   • Using a disinfectant that is effective against Clostridium difficile spores for daily and terminal cleaning
   • If transferring a colonized or infected patient, notifying the receiving healthcare facility

"Accurate identification of C. auris and adherence to infection control practices, coupled with ongoing public health surveillance and investigations, are needed to halt the spread of C. auris in the United States," the report concludes.