Endogenous opportunist Candida parapsilosis
The baby boy, Tim was prematurely born that means he had weakened immune system when he got an ear infection. During the investigation of ear infection course, it was found that baby Tim received fungal infection that may have entered the neonate during the IV insertions while earlier treatments. The gram stained blood cultures have exhibited that the pathogen was Candida parapsilosis which is an endogenous commensal flora. The further tests including CHROM-agar showed a white colony consisting of pseudohyphae confirming the presence of Candida parapsilosis. It lives on the healthy human skin. Moreover, this commensal flora is an opportunistic pathogen that has been associated with multiple hospitals related bloodstream infections as well as bloodstream infections in neonates. It may turn into pathogenic fungi when several alterations occur in the host environment. In this case, the child was prematurely born and immunologically weakened that provided an opportunity to the Candida parapsilosis to transform into pathogenic form (Reiss, Shadomy and Lyon Ch. 11).
Role of CDC in Identifying the Epidemiological Outbreaks
CDC plays a significant and critical role in identifying the outbreaks that start from collecting information, solving the problem and the prosecution of inattentive individuals. Identification of an outbreak involves multiple steps that are preparing the field work, establishing the subsistence of an outbreak, substantiating the diagnosis, designing an active case definition, discovering the cases in a systematic way and documentation of gathered information, performing eloquent epidemiology and developing hypotheses, assessing hypotheses epidemiologically and comparing the evidence with laboratory and environmental evidence and finally implementing preventive control measures and maintaining surveillance and communication. CDC has designed strict laws and regulations against negligent individuals that may from the food industry, pharmaceutical laxity, and healthcare organization. CDC along with state and federal laws has an authority to conduct disease surveillance and control using police power.
Works cited
Reiss, Errol, H. Jean Shadomy, and G. Marshall Lyon. Fundamental medical mycology. John
Wiley & Sons, 2011.
