Investigation of a Cluster of Systemic Candida albicans Infections in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

Systemic candidiasis, particularly due to Candida albicans , has become an important cause of morbidity and mortality in immunocompromised patients. Sick, premature infants seem particularly vulnerable. The authors investigated an apparent outbreak of systemic C. albicans infection occurring in a neonatal intensive care unit by using a case-control study. During the course of this investigation, they introduced two additional methods of typing C. albicans strains for epidemiological purposes - protein electrophoresis patterns and DNA profiles.