ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION Invasive fungal infections are frequently reported in the literature. This is due not only to development of a clear case definition, improved diagnostic methods, and reporting, but also due to an ever-enlarging at-risk population (1). Surveillance data, though not perfect and likely still reflecting underdiagnosis and underreporting of these entities, indicate that over the past several decades, there has been an increasing incidence of invasive fungal infections due to Candida, Aspergillus, Cryptococcus, and Zygomycetes (2). Epidemiologic trends also suggest that although Aspergillus remains the most common mold associated with invasive disease, other filamentous hyphomycetes such as Fusarium and Scedosporium are becoming more common (3-5). This chapter reviews the epidemiology of the most common fungal infections including typical clinical manifestations associated with each fungal pathogen.
