Short versus standard antifungal treatment for bloodstream Candida infection in children
Short Course Versus Standard Course Antifungal Therapy for Pediatric Candidemia: A Multi-Center Randomized Controlled Trial
Checks if seven days of antifungal medicine works as well as the usual 14 days for children with Candida in the blood.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Arkansas Children's Hospital Res Inst NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Little Rock, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11160661 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If your child has candidemia and is doing better after the first week of echinocandin treatment with cleared blood cultures, this study would randomly assign them to stop after seven total days or to continue the standard 14 days. Doctors and nurses at participating children's hospitals will follow children closely for signs the infection returns, treatment side effects, and overall recovery. The trial enrolls children who show early improvement on echinocandin therapy and excludes those with complicated or deep-seated fungal infections. Follow-up visits and monitoring will check for relapse, need for more treatment, and any adverse effects.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Children with uncomplicated candidemia who started on an echinocandin, have cleared blood cultures, and show clinical improvement after the first seven days are the ideal candidates.
Not a fit: Children with complicated or deep-seated fungal infections, persistent positive blood cultures, or who are not improving on initial therapy are unlikely to be eligible or to benefit from a shorter course.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If shorter therapy works as well, children could spend less time on antifungal medicines and in the hospital, with fewer side effects and lower costs.
How similar studies have performed: Adult randomized trials and a pediatric observational study support echinocandins as first-line treatment, but no randomized study has previously compared shorter versus standard duration for pediatric invasive fungal infection, so this question is largely untested.
Where this research is happening
Little Rock, United States
- Arkansas Children's Hospital Res Inst — Little Rock, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Steinbach, William J — Arkansas Children's Hospital Res Inst
- Study coordinator: Steinbach, William J
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.