DOI: 10.36347/sjams.2016.v04i11.051

Pages: 4118-4122

Esophageal Candidiasis is one of the most common opportunistic infections in patients with impaired immunity and the most common cause of esophageal disease in patients with Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS). It can also occur in debilitated patients who have received broad-spectrum antibiotics, steroids and immunosuppressant drugs. This study was designed to determine risk factors of esophageal candidiasis in non-Human Immune Deficiency Virus (HIV) infected patients attending a tertiary care, teaching hospital. Clinical records of all patients of Esophageal Candidiasis diagnosed by esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) and histopathology over a period of eighteen months were studied. Eighteen patients (10 males, 8 females), aged 21-77 years old (mean age 52.9 years) fulfilled the criteria (0.6% of the EGD). The common predisposing factors were carcinoma and diabetes mellitus. The frequent clinical symptoms were retrosternal discomfort, dysphagia and epigastric abdominal pain with endoscopic appearance of scattered mucosal plaques. The common predisposing factors were carcinoma and diabetes mellitus; other risk factors being corticosteroid and antibiotic therapy. All patients responded to treatment with fluconazole.