Biomarkers of fungal lung infection

• Type: Another Publication in an International Scientific Journal
• Date: 2019

Authors

Paiva, J-A (Author) FMUP; Pereira, JM (Author) Other

Journal

The Journal is awaiting validation by the Administrative Services.

Title: CURRENT OPINION IN INFECTIOUS DISEASES

Vol. 32

Pages: 136-142

ISSN: 0951-7375

Publisher: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins

Indexing

ISI Web of Knowledge - 5 Citations

Scopus - 5 Citations

Other information

Authenticus ID: P-00Q-ZJ8

DOI: 10.1097/qco.0000000000000523

Abstract (EN): Purpose of review The incidence of lung fungal infections, namely invasive pulmonary aspergillosis (IPA) and mucormycosis, is increasing in neutropenic and nonneutropenic patients. As they are a major cause of death, early diagnosis and antifungal therapy are crucial for outcome. The role of biomarkers in the management of this infections is the scope of this review. Recent findings Galactomannan in bronchoalveolar lavage shows the best discriminatory power for IPA diagnosis. At baseline, serum galactomannan may be useful to predict outcome and its kinetics may be informative to assess response to antifungal therapy. Recent standardization of PCR technology brought some improvements in IPA and mucormycosis diagnosis. Several new biomarkers are currently under investigation, but none showed a better performance than current available biomarkers. To improve diagnostic accuracy, a combination of biomarkers, including galactomannan, has been proposed. Summary Biomarkers may play an important role in the early diagnosis of fungal lung infections and in prognostic assessment and response monitoring, but more research is needed to determine the best strategy for their clinical use.

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific

No. of pages: 7