While acknowledging that improvements in therapies have led to better care of patients with invasive aspergillosis – a potentially deadly fungal infection – new practice guidelines emphasize that there remains a critical need for early diagnosis.
The Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) have updated guidelines for the diagnosis and management of aspergillosis and published them in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases.
Aspergillosis is an infection caused by the common mold or fungus Aspergillus that is everywhere, both indoors and outdoors. It can be found, for instance, in air conditioning units, compost heaps, and damp or flood-damaged homes and buildings.
Thomas Patterson, chief of the Division of Infectious Disease and professor of medicine at The University of Texas Health Science Center, and of the South Texas Veterans Health Care System – both in San Antonio – is lead author of the updated guidelines.