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Serious fungal infections in Korea

European Journal of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases volume 36, pages 957–963 (2017)Cite this article

Abstract

Information on the incidence and prevalence of fungal infections is of critical value in public health policy. However, nationwide epidemiological data on fungal infections are scarce, due to a lack of surveillance and funding. The objective of this study was to estimate the disease burden of fungal infections in the Republic of Korea. An actuarial approach using a deterministic model was used for the estimation. Data on the number of populations at risk and the frequencies of fungal infections in those populations were obtained from national statistics reports and epidemiology papers. Approximately 1 million people were estimated to be affected by fungal infections every year. The burdens of candidemia (4.12 per 100,000), cryptococcal meningitis (0.09 per 100,000), and Pneumocystis pneumonia (0.51 per 100,000) in South Korea were estimated to be comparable to those in other countries. The prevalence of chronic pulmonary aspergillosis (22.4 per 100,000) was markedly high, probably due to the high burden of tuberculosis in Korea. The low burdens of allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis (56.9 per 100,000) and severe asthma with fungal sensitization (75.1 per 100,000) warrant further study. Oral candidiasis (539 per 100,000) was estimated to affect a much larger population than noted in previous studies. Our work provides valuable insight on the epidemiology of fungal infections; however, additional studies are needed.

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Author information

Author notes

  1. K. Huh

    Present address: Division of Infectious Diseases, Armed Forces Capital Hospital, Seongnam, Korea

Affiliations

  1. Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Samsung Medical Center, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea

    K. Huh, Y. E. Ha & K. R. Peck

  2. The National Aspergillosis Centre, University Hospital of South Manchester, Manchester, UK

    D. W. Denning

  3. The University of Manchester, Manchester, UK

    D. W. Denning

  4. Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, Manchester, UK

    D. W. Denning

Authors
  1. K. Huh
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  2. Y. E. Ha
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  3. D. W. Denning
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  4. K. R. Peck
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to K. R. Peck.

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No funding was provided for this research.

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All authors report nothing to declare.

Additional information

An earlier version of these results was presented at the 6th Trends in Medical Mycology (TIMM-6) conference, 11–14 October 2013, Copenhagen, Denmark (poster P141).

In association with the LIFE program at http://www.LIFE-worldwide.org.

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Huh, K., Ha, Y.E., Denning, D.W. et al. Serious fungal infections in Korea. Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis 36, 957–963 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10096-017-2923-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10096-017-2923-x

Keywords

  • Human Immunodeficiency Virus
  • Cryptococcal Meningitis
  • Invasive Pulmonary Aspergillosis
  • Oral Candidiasis
  • Tinea Capitis