Fluconazole, amphotericin B, and other antifungals may also be used. Treatment normally continues for two weeks after resolution of signs and symptoms and Candida yeasts can no longer can be cultured from blood samples. Some forms of invasive candidiasis, such as infections in the bones, joints, heart, or central nervous system, usually need to be treated for a longer period. Retrospective observational studies suggest that prompt presumptive antifungal therapy (based on symptoms or biomarkers) is effective and can reduce mortality. Epidemiology
Invasive candidiasis is estimated to affect more than 250,000 people and cause more than 50,000 deaths worldwide every year. The CDC estimates that approximately 46,000 cases of healthcare-associated invasive candidiasis occur each year in the US. The estimated mortality attributable to fungemia is 19-40%. However, because the majority of people who develop invasive candidiasis are already sick, it can be difficult to determine if the cause of death is directly attributable to the fungal infection. Fungemia is one of the most common bloodstream infections in the United States. In general, observed incidence rates have been stable or trending higher but declining rates have been achieved with improvements in hygiene and disease management.Deep-seated infections in bones, muscles, joints, eyes, or central nervous system can arise from a bloodstream infection or direct inoculation of Candida may occur, for example, during intestinal surgery.The distribution of Candida species causing invasive candidiasis has changed over the past decades. C. albicans had been the dominant pathogen but now accounts for just half of the isolates.
Posterior cerebral artery syndrome is a condition whereby the blood supply from the posterior cerebral artery (PCA) is restricted, leading to a reduction of the function of the portions of the brain supplied by that vessel: the occipital lobe, the inferomedial temporal lobe, a large portion of the thalamus, and the upper brainstem and midbrain.This event restricts the flow of blood to the brain in a near-immediate fashion. The blood hammer is analogous to the water hammer in hydrology and it consists of a sudden increase of the upstream blood pressure in a blood vessel when the bloodstream is abruptly blocked by vessel obstruction. Complete understanding of the relationship between mechanical parameters in vascular occlusions is a critical issue, which can play an important role in the future diagnosis, understanding and treatment of vascular diseases.Depending upon the location and severity of the occlusion, signs and symptoms may vary within the population affected with PCA syndrome. Blockages of the proximal portion of the vessel produce only minor deficits due to the collateral blood flow from the opposite hemisphere via the posterior communicating artery. In contrast, distal occlusions result in more serious complications. Visual deficits, such as agnosia, prosopagnosia or cortical blindness (with bilateral infarcts) may be a product of ischemic damage to occipital lobe.