First report of fatal fungemia due Fusarium oxysporum in a patient with COVID-19 in Ecuador

Abstract

Filamentous fungal infections are an important cause of systemic infections in immunocompromised patients. Fusarium genus members potentially cause disseminated infections, especially in patients with catheters, due to the ability to adhere to these devices. We describe a case of fatal fungemia due to Fusarium oxysporum in a patient with COVID-19 in Ecuador. The genus identification was carried out with conventional techniques and species identification by molecular and phylogenetic techniques through sequencing of the ITS region.

Keywords

• COVID-19
• Fusarium
• Molecular identification
• Epidemiology
• Fungemia