Incidence and anatomic localization of oral candidiasis in patients with AIDS hospitalized in a public hospital in Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil

Abstract

The objective of this study was to evaluate the incidence, anatomic localization and yeast species isolated from each clinical type of oral candidiasis. The clinical samples were obtained from 67 patients with AIDS with CD4 cell counts below 200 cells/mm3 and hospitalized in a public hospital (Eduardo de Menezes Hospital) in the city of Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil. Yeasts were isolated using Chromagar® Candida. The results show that 50.7% of these patients had oral candidiasis. The pseudomembranous form was the most frequent clinical manifestation of oral candidiasis, followed by the erythematous and angular cheilite forms. The most common site of these clinical forms of oral candidiasis was the tongue. Candida albicans was the most common yeast species isolated from the lesions. However, other species were also found to be associated with these forms of oral candidiasis.

Cytological analysis of the epithelial cells in patients with oral candidiasis

“…As a result of complex interactions between host and organism, candidal infection may range from mild, superficial mucosal involvement (which can be seen in patients with intact immune systems) to a fatal and disseminated disease 2 . There are various factors that make the oral tissues susceptible to Candida infection, such as, xerostomia, poor prosthetic hygiene, antibiotics, corticosteroids, immune deficiency, endocrine disorders, malignancies, as well as radio‐ and chemo‐therapies 3–10 …”

“…2 There are various factors that make the oral tissues susceptible to Candida infection, such as, xerostomia, poor prosthetic hygiene, antibiotics, corticosteroids, immune deficiency, endocrine disorders, malignancies, as well as radio-and chemo-therapies. [3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10] Oral candidiasis is classified as acute or chronic according to the clinical presentation. Acute forms include pseudomembranous candidiasis, or thrush, and erythematous or atrophic candidiasis.…”

Virulence and pathogenicity aspects in Candida albicans infections

“…This form of infection usually occurs due to the lowering of the bacterial population in the mouth following the administration of broad spectrum antibiotics, giving the opportunity to C. albicans to grow and spread. The infection can occur on the mouth mucosa, but usually appears as reddened lesions on the dorsum of the tongue and also the palate (Reichart et al, 2000;Gableri et al, 2008). Also this infection is prominent in HIV positive and AIDS individuals (Hodgson and Rachanis, 2002); (3) chronic hyperplastic candidiasis (candida leukoplakia) can occur on any mucosal surface and it appears as a white, smooth or nodular lesions which cannot be removed by gentle scraping.…”

Acute and Chronic Pseudomembranous Candidosis

“…Gabler et al ( 2008 )) have identifi ed that the main anatomic localization of the pseudomembranous candidosis in HIV patients were tongue (55.5 %), buccal mucosa (37 %), and palate (7.4 %).…”