148. Fungal Disease Mortality Trends, United States, 1999–2017

Abstract

Background: Fungal diseases can lead to substantial morbidity and mortality, although research funding has been disproportionately low compared with other infectious diseases. Despite dramatic changes in immunosuppressive therapy over the past two decades, the U.S. mortality burden of fungal diseases has not been recently assessed. Methods: We analyzed fungal disease-associated mortality trends during 1999- 2017 using multiple cause-of-death mortality records from the National Vital Statistics System. We calculated age-standardized rates for aspergillosis, blastomycosis, candidiasis, coccidioidomycosis, cryptococcosis, histoplasmosis, mucormycosis, pneumocystosis, unspecified mycoses, and other mycoses based on the age distribution of the 2000 U.S. population. Results: Among over 47 million deaths, 86,058 (0.2%) people had one or more fungal diseases listed on the death certificate as an underlying or contributing cause of death (median 4,431 annually) (Figure 1). The age-standardized mortality rate was 2.2/100,000 population in 1999. By 2017, rates declined by 47% to 1.2. The largest declines occurred for pneumocystosis and cryptococcosis, diseases particularly associated with HIV, by 66-70% from 1999 to 2007 and by 3-6% from 2008 to 2017. During 1999-2017, rates for aspergillosis, candidiasis, and other mycoses declined by 46-56%, although rates for candidiasis and other mycoses increased (10% and 31%, respectively) from 2013 to 2017. Overall, the steepest declines were seen in infants and younger adults (Figure 2). Age-standardized mortality rates for fungal diseases as underlying and contributing cause of death, per 100,000 people, by year and fungal disease type, United States, 1999-2017 Age-specific mortality rates for fungal diseases as underlying and contributing cause of death, per 100,000 people, by year and age group, United States, 1999-2017 Conclusion: Fungal disease-associated mortality rates declined by half from 1999 to 2017. Improved treatment of HIV and availability of new antifungals likely influenced the decline. However, fungal diseases are still documented in thousands of deaths annually, and rates differed substantially by disease. Better prevention, diagnosis, and treatment are needed to reduce mortality from fungal diseases.