Kodamaea ohmeri as an emerging pathogen: a case report and review of the literature

Abstract

Kodamaea (Pichia) ohmeri is a yeast-like fungus that has recently emerged as an important etiologic agent of fungemia in immunocompromised patients. We report such a case in a premature neonate born at 29 weeks of gestation. Prior to developing fungemia, she had two episodes of bacterial sepsis on day 13 and day 32 due to Enterobacter cloacae and Staphylococcus epidermidis, respectively. Kodamaea ohmeri was repeatedly isolated from blood cultures and its identity was determined by phenotypic characteristics and sequencing of the ITS and D1/D2 regions of rDNA. The neonate was successfully treated with amphotericin B. The published cases of K. ohmeri fungemia reported in pediatric patients are reviewed highlighting its increasing importance as a bloodstream pathogen.

Keywords:

• Kodamaea ohmeri
• fungemia
• premature neonate

Acknowledgments

The study was supported in part by KURA grant no. MI01/08.

Declaration of interest: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.

This paper was first published online on Early Online on 31 March 2011.