Yes, CDC calls the fungus an ‘urgent’ threat. Here’s what a CT epidemiologist wants you to know

Hartford Courant – Tuesday, April 1, 2025
By Staff Report

To epidemiologist Dr. Ulysses Wu, it would be akin to “bad teenagers throwing a house party in your body.’’

That imagery, depicting a circumstance that often leads to negative consequences, was one Wu used when he described the change that occurs when candida auris fungus goes from colonization in the human body to an infection.

It is then that the fungus can become dangerous.

The fungus is multidrug-resistant and can cause life-threatening illness, according to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

According to the CDC, there were 4,514 new clinical cases of C. auris in the United States in 2023, and “the number of clinical cases has continued to increase since the first U.S. case was reported in 2016.”

Also according to the CDC, from 2016-2023, there have been 10,788 clinical cases in the United States, with eight cases recorded in Connecticut in that time. It is more likely to impact the elderly and people who already are ill.

“We have certainly seen it,” said Wu, chief epidemiologist and system director for infectious diseases at Hartford HealthCare, noting that an infection with the fungus “is very dangerous.”

The Los Angeles Times reported last week that the Georgia Department of Public Health recently reported a surge in cases in health care facilities, and a recent study found an alarming rate of spread in Florida hospitals.

But, as stories circulate about the potentially deadly fungus spread in hospitals and senior care facilities across the country, Wu said it is important that people understand that this organism is present in many places and it is not making people sick.

“When it causes infection, that is when we start to worry,” Wu said. If it’s spread in a hospital setting or nursing home, that would be a problem, he said.

“The biggest concern is that it is transmissible and can develop resistance to anti-fungal medication very quickly,” he said.

But hospitals in Connecticut are well aware of this, watch for signs of infections in patients and are in regular contact with the state Department of Health, which also is knowledgeable and prepared, he said.

The DPH notes that it collaborates with the Katherine A. Kelley State Public Health Laboratory, and the CDC Antimicrobial Resistance Laboratory Network to “provide Connecticut health care facilities with rapid and accurate identification of Candida auris and appropriate infection control.”

“I will give credit to the state,” Wu said.

Wu, as does the CDC, said hospitals and nursing homes use early case detection techniques, patient screening, and strict compliance with infection prevention and control practices.

“We are prepared for it,” he said.

The state Department of Health investigated Connecticut’s first case of Candida auris in June 2017 in an acute care hospital. The person who contracted it may have picked it up in another county, health department officials said in 2019.

Wu said hospitals are able to identify people who may be at risk by asking questions about travel and length of travel.

“We get alerted and look for it,” he said, and if needed, patients can be placed in isolation while tests are done. “We try to be preventative.”

Wu said candida auris can be on surfaces and can be spread through fecal matter, but is not spread in an airborne way. Sanitation is crucial, he said, and part of this is “good hand hygiene.”

The CDC noted that candida auris can cause “infection in different parts of the body like the blood, wounds, and ears” and that symptoms “depend on the location and severity of infection. Symptoms may be similar to symptoms of infections caused by bacteria like fever or chills,” but there is “not a common set of symptoms specific for C. auris infections.”

Wu said he is concerned about cuts at the federal level when it comes to agencies dealing with health, as, if there is a “lack of flow of information we are going to be handcuffed.” He said even the state DPH gets a lot of information from the federal level.

“That flow of information is very important,” Wu said.

Wu has previously expressed concern about the spread of misinformation when it comes to health care issues, including about vaccinations.

Wu said the same concern applies to the withdrawal of the United States from the World Health Organization, “as then we are not getting information.”

The White House order about the WHO withdrawal says the Secretary of State and the director of the Office of Management and Budget must “identify credible and transparent United States and international partners to assume necessary activities previously undertaken by the WHO.”

Wu said he does not think Connecticut residents should be alarmed about the candida fungus.

“They should not be fearful, but they should be very respectful,” he said, noting again the importance of good hygiene.

Wu has recently noted his concern about the recent measles cases and death that have occurred in the nation, which he said were preventable. He added that he sees mistrust in science and mistrust in vaccines, “is like driving without a seatbelt,” and he supports vaccinations.

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