nosocomial candiduria in critically ill patients admitted to intensive care units in qazvin, iran

background a broad variety of fungi, especially candida species, are becoming increasingly common causes of urinary tract infections in hospital settings. objectives the current cross-sectional descriptive study aimed to determine the causative agents, risk factors and incidence rate of candiduria in critically ill patients, hospitalized in intensive care units (icus) of four iranian hospitals. patients and methods a total of 155 children and adult patients, admitted to icus of the four university educational hospitals, who demonstrated candida-positive urine cultures, were examined. samples were processed via mycological procedures by direct microscopy and culture. results candiduria was confirmed in 50 (32.26 %) patients and candida albicans was the most frequently isolated species representing 60.0% of isolates, followed by 14.0% c. glabrata, 12.0% c. parapsilosis, 10.0% c. krusei, and 4.0% c. tropicalis. most patients were female (58%) with a mean age of 46.7 years old. generally, 39.7% and 62% of adults and children showed candiduria, respectively. the commonest predisposing factors were antibiotic therapy (98.0%), urinary catheterization (92.0%), corticotherapy (84.0%), being female (42.6 %), use of feeding tube (56%), and extended hospitalization, respectively. conclusions the high frequency of candiduria in icu patients can be decreased by shortening the duration of urinary catheterization, avoiding extra antibiotics and corticosteroids, as well as controlling the predisposing factors and underlying conditions.