Clinical efficacy of echinocandin antifungals

The prevalence of fungal infections has increased significantly over the past few decades. Candida and Aspergillus spp. are the most common fungal pathogens due to recent changes in medical technology. Amphotericin B continues to be the treatment of choice in many severe disseminated mycosis cases,...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inCurrent opinion in infectious diseases Vol. 14; no. 6; p. 685
Main Author Arathoon, E G
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States 01.12.2001
Subjects
Anti-Bacterial Agents - therapeutic use
Antifungal Agents - pharmacology
Antifungal Agents - therapeutic use
Echinocandins
Humans
Lipopeptides
Lipoproteins - therapeutic use
Microbial Sensitivity Tests
Mycoses - drug therapy
Peptides
Peptides, Cyclic - therapeutic use
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Summary:The prevalence of fungal infections has increased significantly over the past few decades. Candida and Aspergillus spp. are the most common fungal pathogens due to recent changes in medical technology. Amphotericin B continues to be the treatment of choice in many severe disseminated mycosis cases, but problems with toxicity, resistance and non-availability of an absorbable oral form are important drawbacks. The azoles offer a less toxic alternative but often they are not as effective as amphotericin B and resistance is an increasing problem. The echinocandins are new active antifungal agents with a novel mechanism of action. During the past year, one agent has been released and two others are undergoing advanced stages of investigation. Although these agents are not the ideal antifungal drug, they do offer new options of therapy.
ISSN:0951-7375
DOI:10.1097/00001432-200112000-00004