COVID-19 is a disease caused by infection with the novel coronavirus SARS-COV2 which emerged in late 2019 in Wuhan, China (1). This illness is associated with viral prodromal symptoms, then subsequently fever, cough, and shortness of breath (1). In a subset of patients, lower respiratory tract infection associated with respiratory failure develops. Among these patients, progression to severe respiratory failure and ARDS requiring ventilator support has occurred in an alarming number of patients at rates that are many-fold higher than what is typically associated with seasonal influenza A or B (2). One of the most feared complications of post-influenza respiratory failure is the development of invasive pulmonary aspergillosis which may occur in as many as 15-20% of those requiring ventilator support (based on European data) (3-6). Among those developing IA following influenza A or B, mortality of 50% or greater is reported (3-6).
The purpose of this study is to identify the number of individuals with severe CoVID who require ventilator support and who develop serious fungal infections. The study is an observational study, meaning that we are not providing any intervention that does not involve usual standard of care. Our chief goal is to find evidence of fungal infection by using traditional, approved methods of diagnosis, but by applying these methods in the same way and frequency among all study participants. We will be looking especially for evidence of a fungal infection known as Aspergillus, which can causes a serious lung infection called invasive aspergillosis (IA).