Abstract: Objective To explore the species profile and anti-yeast susceptibility of pathogenic yeast isolated from infants and young children with dermatocandidiasis. Methods Yeast strains were isolated from infants and young children with dermatocandidiasis, and identified with routine methods. Agar dilution test was used to determine the susceptibility of fungal isolates to fluconazole, miconazole, bifonazole, econazole, clotrimazole and nystatin. The breakpoint for antifungal resistance was established according to the MICs resulted from microdilution test recommended by NCCLS M27-A. Resistance is considered to occur when the MIC determined by agar dilution test is 4 or more folds higher than the breakpoint MIC determined by microdilution test. Results A total of 75 cases of dermatocandidiasis were collected, and 88 strains of yeast were isolated; they were consistently identified as Candida albicans . Agar dilution test showed that: the MIC was 1 - 256 mg/L for fluconazole, 0.25 - 64 mg/L for miconazole, 0.5 - 64 mg/L for bifonazole, 0.25 - 32 mg/L for econazole, 1 - 64 mg/L for clotrimazole, 0.5 - 32 mg/L for nystatin. All the C. albicans isolates were susceptible to nystatin, while resistance to fluconazole, clotrimazole, econazole, miconazole and bifonazole was observed in 1, 4, 3, 5 and 9 C. albicans strains respectively. Conclusions C. albicans is the most predominant species causing dermatocandidiasis in infants and young children. Resistance is observed to fluconazole, miconazole, bifonazole, econazole and clotrimazole in some isolates of C. albicans along with cross-resistance. However, all isolates are susceptible to nystatin.

Key words: Dermatocandidiasis, Candida spp., Susceptibility test, Antifungal drugs