Study: Candida auris often spreads from patients to gloves, gowns of healthcare workers
News briefToday at 12:04 p.m.
Chris Dall, MA
Topics
Candida auris
Healthcare-Associated Infections
A new study indicates that transmission of a multidrug-resistant fungus from patients to the gloves and gowns of healthcare personnel (HCP) occurs frequently during routine patient care, researchers reported yesterday in Open Forum Infectious Diseases.
Labeled an urgent threat by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Candida auris is difficult to eradicate and spreads rapidly in healthcare settings. Invasive infections are fatal in 29% to 62% of patients, many of whom have weakened immune systems and require complex medical care. A total of 6,304 clinical cases were reported in the United States in 2024.
The prospective observational study, led by researchers at the University of Maryland, examined interactions between HCP and patients with current or previous C auris colonization at nine acute-care hospitals in California, Illinois, Maryland, and New York. The researchers collected patient samples from five body sites upon enrollment and sampled HCP gloves and gowns and room surfaces after routine interactions in patient rooms.
“The overall aim of this study was to understand risk factors for C. auris transmission in the acute care setting, using transfer of C. auris to healthcare personnel glove and/or gown as a surrogate measure of transmission potential,” the study authors wrote.
Transfer found in 29% of interactions
In total, 109 C auris–colonized patients were enrolled in the study, and 1,083 patient-HCP interactions were recorded. The researchers found C auris transfer to gloves and/or gowns in 29% of interactions overall.Transfer was highest among nursing assistants/patient care technicians (odds ratio [OR], 5.2), occupational/physical therapists (OR, 4.8), and respiratory therapists (OR, 4.7) compared with environmental services personnel. Transfer was more than three times higher when healthcare workers touched a patient, compared with touching only an environmental surface. Patients colonized at all five body sites were 15 times more likely to transfer C auris to an HCP than those colonized at only one site.
“These findings highlight the need for C. auris screening and effective strategies to interrupt transfer of C. auris to HCP during patient care and prevent C. auris transmission in healthcare facilities,” the authors concluded.