What are the guidelines for the management of IFIs?

Invasive fungal infections (IFIs) are life-threatening conditions that require rapid diagnostic and optimal management to mitigate their high morbidity and mortality rate. They are also associated with a high economic burden, due to prolonged hospitalisation, the need for intensive supportive care, and the consumption of costly new antifungal agents. To address these issues, several international organisations have proposed guidelines for the management of IFIs.

The British Society for Medical Mycology (BSMM) have a paper on best practice recommendations for the diagnosis of serious fungal infections.

The Mycoses Study Group Education & Research Consortium (MSGERC) home page has several useful resources including a newsletter, case studies on the DoctorFungus website and interactive CME studies.

European Confederation of Medical Mycology (ECMM) is also committed to providing international expertise, guidance, and leadership with the key objectives of improving diagnosis, treatment, outcome, and survival of persons with invasive fungal diseases. They are putting together some universal guidelines and on the linked page provide some training for those who might like to contribute to this. They also link to the Mycoses publication, which provides many useful articles/guidelines, and host a directory of fungal diagnostic tests for ECMM members to help find laboratories that perform certain diagnostic tests that are only carried out at a few centres.

European Society of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases (ESCMID) list many guidelines including Defining breakthrough invasive fungal infection-Position paper of the mycoses study group education and research consortium and the European Confederation of Medical Mycology.

The American Thoracic Society (ATS) have also published guidelines on laboratory diagnosis of fungal infections, particularly in pulmonary and critical care medicine.

Guidelines and protocols are useful for keeping all diagnosis to an accurate and high standard. It is important to follow the guidelines and protocols used by the laboratory that you are working in to ensure patients get a quick, accurate diagnosis and the most appropriate treatment.