Open Access
CC BY 4.0 · J Pediatr Infect Dis 2023; 18(03): 132-138
DOI: 10.1055/s-0043-1767737
Original Article

Investigation of Oral and Fecal Colonization with Candida Species and Associated Factors in Human Immunodeficiency Virus-Infected Children in Türkiye

Authors

  • Esma Akkoyun Bilgi

    1   Department of Medical Microbiology, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Türkiye
  • Gonca Erköse Genç

    1   Department of Medical Microbiology, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Türkiye
  • Manolya Kara

    2   Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases, Department of Pediatrics, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Türkiye
  • Eda Kepenekli Kadayıfçı

    3   Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases, Department of Pediatrics, Marmara University School of Medicine, Istanbul, Türkiye
  • Selda Hançerli Törün

    2   Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases, Department of Pediatrics, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Türkiye
  • Canan Baydemir

    4   Department of Biostatistics and Medical Informatics, Kocaeli University Faculty of Medicine, Kocaeli, Türkiye
  • Ayper Somer

    2   Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases, Department of Pediatrics, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Türkiye
  • Ali Ağaçfidan

    1   Department of Medical Microbiology, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Türkiye
  • Zayre Erturan

    1   Department of Medical Microbiology, Istanbul Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Türkiye

Funding This work was supported by the Research Fund of Istanbul University, Project No: 26586.

Abstract

Objective The risk of endogenous infections in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected individuals increases with Candida species colonized in mouth and intestinal areas. The predisposing factors for colonization and the prevalence of different Candida spp. in HIV-infected Turkish children remain unknown. This study aimed to determine the colonization frequency and risk factors of colonization with Candida species in oral and fecal samples of HIV-infected pediatric patients in relation to a control group.

Methods Oral and feces samples of 22 HIV-infected and 52 healthy children were plated onto CHROMagar and CHROM-Pal-agar. Yeasts were identified by conventional methods, and strains with insufficient identification were identified by molecular techniques.

ResultsCandida spp. were detected in oral/fecal samples of 50%/68.2% HIV-infected and 36.5%/73.1% healthy children. The most common species was Candida albicans in oral and fecal samples of HIV-infected (31.8 and 31.8%) and healthy (26.9 and 48.1%) children. The most frequently non-albicans species in oral samples was Candida dubliniensis (18.2%) in HIV-infected children and Candida parapsilosis (3.8%) in healthy children. In feces samples, C. parapsilosis, Candida glabrata, and Candida krusei were most frequent (13.6%, each) in HIV-infected patients, and Candida kefyr (11.5%) was most frequent in controls. There was a significant association between oral C. dubliniensis colonization and HIV infection (p = 0.006). Yeast carriage was not associated with gender and viral load in HIV-infected patients.

Conclusion The isolation of C. dubliniensis from oral and fecal samples of pediatric HIV patients was done for the first time in Türkiye in the present study. Additional studies are needed to clarify the factors associated with oral and fecal Candida colonization in these children.



Publication History

Received: 19 October 2022

Accepted: 22 February 2023

Article published online:
31 March 2023

© 2023. The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, permitting unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction so long as the original work is properly cited. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

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