Candida auris is a yeast responsible for many infections. Resistant to most antifungal drugs, this fungus causes several deaths worldwide. Optical microscope view. (Photo by: BSIP/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
A deadly, often drug-resistant fungus is infecting more than 6,600 people across more than half of the United States, with Texas reporting the most cases.
The first case of Candida auris in the United States was reported in 2016. Since then, the number of cases per year has continued to increase. As of July 25, 6,669 cases have been reported. That number is off the pace compared to the same point last year, when 7,779 cases were reported.
Texas had the most cases reported as of July 25 with 1,148. The Lone Star State had 1,156 as of this point last year.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention classify cases of the disease in two ways.
The first are clinical cases where a person tests positive for the disease after being tested while being symptomatic. The second are people who are tested for the disease, but it is not making them sick. In those instances, the person is being tested to find out if they have been colonized with the disease.
When the July 25 numbers were released, Texas had the most screening cases with 715 and the second most clinical cases with 433. California led the nation in clinical cases with 873. They did not report any screening cases.
On Thursday, the Texas Department of State Health Services provided updated numbers that showed 438 clinical cases and 743 screening cases had been identified in the Lone Star State as of Wednesday.
What is Candida auris, and how does it spread?
Candida auris is a fungal infection. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says some patients get severe, sometimes life-threatening, infections from C. auris. Other patients, however, show no symptoms at all in what is called colonization. The fungus is easily spread in healthcare settings.
C. auris can be spread on objects and surfaces by those who are sick and those without symptoms showing. The fungus can live for a long time on surfaces, the CDC says.
The Cleveland Clinic says the people most at risk of contracting a C. auris infection are those with an already weakened immune system from an underlying health condition. They say those who have medical devices like a breathing tube, central venous line, feeding tube or catheter have an increased risk of allowing the fungus to enter the body.
Those who have been in the hospital for a long time or are in a long-term care facility are also at an increased risk.
The CDC says handwashing and using alcohol-based hand sanitizers can help prevent the spread of C. auris, as well as isolation of those who have the fungus.
In healthcare settings, caregivers can use special disinfectants and wear gloves and gowns to help prevent the spread.
Editor's note: An earlier version of this story only provided data on screened cases of C. auris and did not include clinical cases. Those numbers have been updated to include both sets of data.
The Source: Information in this article comes from the Texas Department of State Health Services, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Cleveland Clinic.