Newer antifungal agents.

Department of Infectious Diseases, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA. LarruB@email.chop.edu

Current opinion in pediatrics 2013 Feb

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In recent years there has been an evolution of a better understanding of the pharmacology and clinical indications of existing antifungal agents and also the development of new broad-spectrum triazoles and a newer class of antifungal agents, the echinocandins. The availability of these agents has broadened the therapeutic options of invasive fungal disease among children and consequently antifungal therapy has become increasingly complex. Adoption of adult guidelines' recommendations has been used to guide pediatric treatment as specific pediatric data were often lacking. This approach has not always selected the most appropriate therapy for newborns or young infants, as the under-dosage of voriconazole based on adult data revealed. Therefore, a detailed understanding of the available antifungal agents in children is crucial for the successful treatment of these serious infections. In this review we summarize the main findings regarding antifungal treatment among children that have been recently published, focusing on the pharmacology and pediatric use of newer antifungal agents.