Emerging Challenges in Diagnosis and Treatment of Invasive Fungal Infections: Addressing the Impact of COVID-19 and New Pathogens

Purpose of ReviewInvasive fungal infections (IFIs) pose significant challenges in healthcare settings, affecting a wide range of patient populations and often resulting in high morbidity and mortality rates. This narrative review is aimed at exploring the current state of knowledge on the diagnosis and treatment of IFIs, focusing on the recent developments, advancements, and obstacles in managing these life-threatening infections. The objective of this study involved conducting a comprehensive literature search, followed by a rigorous selection process to identify relevant studies. Subsequently, a critical analysis of the literature was undertaken, and the obtained information was carefully synthesized to achieve the research aim.Recent FindingsRecent advances in diagnosis and treatment have greatly improved our ability to detect and manage of IFIs. The non-culture-based techniques have increased the accuracy and speed of fungal detection, while new antifungal drugs and immunotherapies have shown promising results in the treatment of IFIs. The principles of prophylactic and antifungal therapy are currently affected by new challenges in the epidemiology of IFIs, the emergence of the multidrug-resistant fungal pathogen (Candida auris), and the increasing rate of antifungal resistance.SummaryMost promising prospects for improving the management of IFIs consist of new diagnostic techniques and novel therapeutic options. The use of non-culture-based techniques including antigen assays can speed up diagnosis and enable the timely beginning of antifungal therapy. However, the diagnosis of IFIs remains challenging due to the heterogeneity of characteristics among different fungal pathogens and the limitations of techniques.