CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — The CDC has called Candida auris an “urgent threat” as it continues to spread rapidly across the country.
The fungus is often resistant to multiple antifungal drugs, spreads easily in health care facilities and can cause severe infections with high death rates.
Tracking data shows Illinois reported 276 clinical cases of Candida auris over the past year.
"It can be really serious, especially in people who are immunocompromised on ventilators really ill in hospitals," said Chicago Department of Public Health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady during her weekly Facebook Live Q&A session.
Despite Illinois being among the six states with the most cases, Arwady said the good news is that the state excels at identifying and containing the fungal threat.
"We are known here in Chicago and Illinois as being one of the places that detected it early, has put a lot of resources into controlling it and, even during COVID, have managed to keep it under reasonably good control from a spread perspective," Arwady said.
Arwady added the COVID-19 pandemic likely contributed to fungus' rapid growth, especially in hospitals, which likely shifted their focus away from disinfecting other kinds of germs.
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