AUSTRALIAN JOURNAL OF BIOMEDICAL RESEARCH
Original Article
May 22, 2026 58 13

A Comprehensive Review of Candida auris Infections in Saudi Hospitals: Risk Factors, Resistance, and Mortality: A Systematic Review

Waleed Abdullah Almalki 1 2 *
1 Department of Clinical Laboratory Sciences, College of Applied Medical Sciences, Taif University, Taif, Saudi Arabia 2 Department of Botany and Microbiology, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia * Corresponding Author
Australian Journal of Biomedical Research, 2(2), 2026, aubm021, https://doi.org/10.63946/aubiomed/18581
Publication date: May 22, 2026
Full Text (PDF)

ABSTRACT

Candida auris is an emerging multidrug-resistant pathogen that represents a major global health threat. It readily colonizes the skin, spreads efficiently in healthcare settings, and causes severe infections in critically ill patients. Cases of C. auris, including bloodstream infections, urinary tract infections, and co-infections with bacteria such as Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Klebsiella pneumoniae, and Staphylococcus aureus, have been documented across Saudi Arabian hospitals. The pathogen has also been associated with worse outcomes in COVID-19 patients. However, data on antifungal resistance mechanisms and disease epidemiology in the Kingdom remain limited. This review synthesizes documented cases from Saudi Arabian hospitals, with a focus on clinical features, risk factors, antifungal susceptibility, and patient outcomes, to improve healthcare awareness, guide infection control strategies, and support effective management of C. aurisinfections in the region.

KEYWORDS

Candida Auris Saudi Arabia Multidrug-Resistant Fungi Healthcare-Associated Infections COVID-19 Nosocomial Transmission Antifungal Resistance

CITATION (Vancouver)

Almalki WA. A Comprehensive Review of Candida auris Infections in Saudi Hospitals: Risk Factors, Resistance, and Mortality: A Systematic Review. Australian Journal of Biomedical Research. 2026;2(2):aubm021. https://doi.org/10.63946/aubiomed/18581
APA
Almalki, W. A. (2026). A Comprehensive Review of Candida auris Infections in Saudi Hospitals: Risk Factors, Resistance, and Mortality: A Systematic Review. Australian Journal of Biomedical Research, 2(2), aubm021. https://doi.org/10.63946/aubiomed/18581
Harvard
Almalki, W. A. (2026). A Comprehensive Review of Candida auris Infections in Saudi Hospitals: Risk Factors, Resistance, and Mortality: A Systematic Review. Australian Journal of Biomedical Research, 2(2), aubm021. https://doi.org/10.63946/aubiomed/18581
AMA
Almalki WA. A Comprehensive Review of Candida auris Infections in Saudi Hospitals: Risk Factors, Resistance, and Mortality: A Systematic Review. Australian Journal of Biomedical Research. 2026;2(2), aubm021. https://doi.org/10.63946/aubiomed/18581
Chicago
Almalki, Waleed Abdullah. "A Comprehensive Review of Candida auris Infections in Saudi Hospitals: Risk Factors, Resistance, and Mortality: A Systematic Review". Australian Journal of Biomedical Research 2026 2 no. 2 (2026): aubm021. https://doi.org/10.63946/aubiomed/18581
MLA
Almalki, Waleed Abdullah "A Comprehensive Review of Candida auris Infections in Saudi Hospitals: Risk Factors, Resistance, and Mortality: A Systematic Review". Australian Journal of Biomedical Research, vol. 2, no. 2, 2026, aubm021. https://doi.org/10.63946/aubiomed/18581

REFERENCES

  1. Shariq A, Rasheed Z, Alghsham RS, Al Abdulmonem W. Candida auris: An emerging fungus that presents a serious global health threat. Int J Health Sci. 2023;17(2). Available from: https://pub.qu.edu.sa/index.php/journal/article/view/8153
  2. Almajid A, Zeidan A, Alsaihati F, Alghashmari K, Almousa Z, Ashour T, et al. A comprehensive review of epidemiology, risk factors, clinical manifestations, antifungal susceptibility, and mortality of Candida auris in Saudi Arabia. Cureus. 2025;17(8):e89455. doi:10.7759/cureus.89455
  3. Kaki R. Risk factors and mortality of the newly emerging Candida auris in a university hospital in Saudi Arabia. Mycology. 2023;14(3):256–263. doi:10.1080/21501203.2023.2227218
  4. Guan Q, Alasmari F, Li C, Mfarrej S, Mukahal M, Arold ST, et al. Independent introductions and nosocomial transmission of Candida auris in Saudi Arabia: A genomic epidemiological study of an outbreak from a hospital in Riyadh. Microbiol Spectr. 2025;13:e03260-24. doi:10.1128/spectrum.03260-24
  5. Alshahrani FS, Elgujja AA, Alsubaie S, Ezreqat S, Albarrag A, Barry M, et al. Risk factors for Candidozyma auris among admitted patients in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (2020–2022). Infect Drug Resist. 2025;18:3369–3381. doi:10.2147/IDR.S528127
  6. Al-Jindan R, Al-Eraky DM. Two cases of the emerging Candida auris in a university hospital from Saudi Arabia. Saudi J Med Med Sci. 2021;9(1):71–74. doi:10.4103/sjmms.sjmms_449_19
  7. Elsawy A, Alquthami K, Alkhutani N, Marwan D, Abbas A. The second confirmed case of Candida auris from Saudi Arabia. J Infect Public Health. 2019;12(6):907–908. doi:10.1016/j.jiph.2019.07.011
  8. AlJindan R, AlEraky DM, Mahmoud N, Abdalhamid B, Almustafa M, AbdulAzeez S, et al. Drug resistance-associated mutations in ERG11 of multidrug-resistant Candida auris in a tertiary care hospital of Eastern Saudi Arabia. J Fungi. 2021;7(1):18. doi:10.3390/jof7010018
  9. Alashqar MB, Alabdan L, Khan M, Almakadma AH, Almustanyir S. A case report of a Candida auris infection in Saudi Arabia. Cureus. 2021;13(5):e15240. doi:10.7759/cureus.15240
  10. Alanazi KH, Roushdy HM, Alzubaidi WI, Alanazi AS, Alanazi NM, Alamri AH, et al. An overview of healthcare-associated Candida auris outbreaks in Ministry of Health hospitals Saudi Arabia 2020–2022: Retrospective multicentric study. PLOS ONE. 2025;20(1):e0313589. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0313589
  11. Meyer D, Martin EK, Madad S, Dhagat P, Nuzzo JB. Preparedness and response to an emerging health threat—Lessons learned from Candida auris outbreaks in the United States. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol. 2021;42(11):1301–1306. doi:10.1017/ice.2021.12
  12. Ruiz Gaitán AC, Moret A, López Hontangas JL, Molina JM, Aleixandre López AI, Cabezas AH, et al. Nosocomial fungemia by Candida auris: First four reported cases in continental Europe. Rev Iberoam Micol. 2017;34(1):23–27. doi:10.1016/j.riam.2016.11.002
  13. Yadav A, Singh A, Wang Y, Haren MHV, Singh A, de Groot T, et al. Colonisation and transmission dynamics of Candida auris among chronic respiratory diseases patients hospitalised in a chest hospital, Delhi, India: A comparative analysis of whole genome sequencing and microsatellite typing. J Fungi (Basel). 2021;7(2):81. doi:10.3390/jof7020081

LICENSE

Creative Commons License
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.