Antifungal therapy for chronic pulmonary aspergillosis

Chronic pulmonary aspergillosis is a progressive disease caused by Aspergillus spp in patients with underlying chronic lung disease and affects more than 3 million people worldwide. 1 Bongomin F Asio LG Baluku JB Kwizera R Denning DW Chronic pulmonary aspergillosis: notes for a clinician in a resource-limited setting where there is no mycologist. J Fungi (Basel). 2020; 6: e75 Crossref PubMed Scopus (16) Google Scholar Diagnosis is on the basis of consensus criteria, and existing treatment guidelines are mainly based on cohort studies. 2 Denning DW Cadranel J Beigelman-Aubry C et al. Chronic pulmonary aspergillosis: rationale and clinical guidelines for diagnosis and management. Eur Respir J. 2016; 47: 45-68 Crossref PubMed Scopus (436) Google Scholar Correct diagnosis is a huge challenge in countries with a high burden of pulmonary tuberculosis, as the clinical presentations are similar; in addition, chronic pulmonary aspergillosis is a well recognised complication of pulmonary tuberculosis. Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) for the management of chronic pulmonary aspergillosis are few. Efficacy of 12-months oral itraconazole versus 6-months oral itraconazole to prevent relapses of chronic pulmonary aspergillosis: an open-label, randomised controlled trial in IndiaTreatment of chronic pulmonary aspergillosis with 12 months of oral itraconazole was superior to 6 months of oral itraconazole in reducing relapses at 2 years. Itraconazole should be given for at least 12 months for treating chronic pulmonary aspergillosis. Full-Text PDF