Oral Candida Carriage and Fungi Species Prevalence in Libyans

Abstract

Fungi are normal, harmless commensals found in the mouth of approximately 40% of healthy ‎individuals, however, Candida albicans can be a causative agent for oral fungal infection. Methods: this study comprised 310 routine dental patients, aged 18 years and above, examined in dental clinic over 9 months at Central Dental Clinic in Benghazi city presented with routinely encountered dental complaints such as dental caries, gingivitis, periodontal disease, dental prosthesis problems,.

A mouth rinse was taken from each patient and immediately transferred to the laboratory for cultivation in a Sabouraud’s Dextrose Agar (SDA) by the standard mycological methods. Results: the prevalence of oral carriage of yeasts in 310 cases was 32% (100 patients; 54 females), without any correlation between the clinical variables and candida carriage except for the use dental prostheses. Twelve strains of candidal and non-candidal fungal species could be isolated. Candida albicans in 68 isolates, Candida dubliniensis in 15, Trichosporon spp in 5, candida catenulata in 2, candida krusei in 2, and Candida magnolia, Candida pelliculosa, Cryptococcus humicola complex, Cryptococcus Laurentii, Geotrichum capitatum, and Rhodotorula rubra 1 case each. Interestingly, the isolates were either sensitive (67%) or intermediately sensitive (33%) to fluconazole without a single resistance to it was recorded in this study.

Conclusions: Candida albicans followed by Candida dubliniensis are the most predominate species of the isolated oral fungi, their resistance to antifungal agents is high to amphotericin, fluocytosine, and clotrimazole, but less profound to voriconazole and itraconazole. Interestingly, no resistant strains to fluconazole could be found.