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Epidemiology of Fungal Osteomyelitis

Current Fungal Infection Reports volume 8, pages 262–270 (2014)Cite this article

Abstract

Fungal osteomyelitis is a severe and debilitating disease, affecting both immunocompetent and immunocompromised patients. Recent comprehensive reviews showed that the burden of fungal osteoarticular infections is steadily increasing due to the growing number of patients at risk. Candida osteomyelitis frequently affects non-immunosuppressed pediatric and adult patients. C. albicans and C. tropicalis are the predominant recovered species. Vertebral osteomyelitis is most common in adults, whereas femoral and humeral bones are typically infected in pediatric patients. Aspergillus osteomyelitis may develop in both immunocompromised and immunocompetent patients; the vertebral bodies and ribs are most frequently involved. Dimorphic osteoarticular infections occur in endemic areas. Some dimorphic fungi affect immunocompetent patients, while others develop in immune-impaired patients. Osteoarticular mucormycosis and fusariosis also principally develop in immunocompromised patients. Scedosporium bone infections may emerge in immunocompetent hosts with mycetoma or in immunocompromised patients with hematogenous dissemination. Cryptococcal osteomyelitis occurs in patients with predominantly impaired cellular immunity.

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Conflict of Interest

MN Gamaletsou, TJ Walsh, and NV Sipsas all declare no conflicts of interest.

Human and Animal Rights and Informed Consent

This article does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects performed by any of the authors.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Pathophysiology Department, Medical School, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Mikras Asias 75, Athens, 115 27, Greece

    Maria N. Gamaletsou & Nikolaos V. Sipsas

  2. Departments of Medicine, Pediatrics, and Microbiology-Immunology, Weill Cornell Medical Center and Cornell University, New York Presbyterian Hospital, 1300 York Ave, Rm A421, New York City, NY, 10065, USA

    Thomas J. Walsh

  3. Hospital for Special Surgery, New York City, NY, USA

    Thomas J. Walsh

  4. International Osteoarticular Mycoses Study Consortium, New York, NY, USA

    Maria N. Gamaletsou, Thomas J. Walsh & Nikolaos V. Sipsas

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  1. Maria N. Gamaletsou
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  2. Thomas J. Walsh
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  3. Nikolaos V. Sipsas
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Correspondence to Nikolaos V. Sipsas.

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Gamaletsou, M.N., Walsh, T.J. & Sipsas, N.V. Epidemiology of Fungal Osteomyelitis. Curr Fungal Infect Rep 8, 262–270 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12281-014-0200-3

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Keywords

  • Fungal osteomyelitis
  • Epidemiology
  • Risk factors
  • Osteoarticular mycoses