New National Guidelines for Valley Fever Treatment Led by UAHS Center Director

HaboobUpdated guidelines for treating people infected with Valley Fever, a disease caused by a fungus that is common in the U.S. Southwest, have been produced by a panel of experts led by John N. Galgiani, MD, director of the Valley Fever Center for Excellence at the University of Arizona Health Sciences.

The recommendations include suggested treatment options for pregnant women, patients who are immunocompromised and others who may have a higher risk of severe illness. In severe cases, the disease may spread from the lungs to the bones or the brain.

John Galgiani, MDDr. Galgiani, a UA professor of medicine, is the lead author of the “2016 Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) Clinical Practice Guidelines for the Treatment of Coccidioidomycosis,” geared toward primary care physicians and recently published in the journal, Clinical Infectious Diseases.

Fungal Illness Endemic to Southwest

Coccidioidomycosis, or Valley Fever, is caused by the Coccidioides fungus. Found in soils of the U.S. Southwest, it causes infection when inhaled that often is mistaken as bacterial or viral pneumonia, resulting in unnecessary tests and inappropriate therapy.

The guidelines suggest shorter courses of antibiotics for hospitalized patients and more ambulatory treatment for most individuals who have contracted Valley Fever. Dr. Galgiani noted a friend diagnosed with Valley Fever spent several days in the hospital and should not have been admitted, as care for the fungal disease often can be managed in an outpatient clinic setting at much less expense.

“That’s an example of $20,000 of hospital care, maybe $30,000, that was unnecessary for best care,” Dr. Galgiani said. “The new guidelines are intended to address that.”

Dr. Galgiani notes, of all U.S. Valley Fever infections (about 150,000 per year), two-thirds are contracted in Arizona. Most people recover in a matter of weeks or months, but about 160 patients die each year from the disease.

Animals, especially dogs, also are susceptible. A sea lion at a zoo in Fresno, Calif., reportedly died of Valley Fever in July and an African lion died of the disease last October at Tucson’s Reid Park Zoo.

In updating the guidelines, Dr. Galgiani led a panel of 16 experts—including fellow UA College of Medicine – Tucson physicians Neil M. Ampel, MD, and Jeffrey R. Lisse, MD—who reviewed available literature on coccidioidomycosis. The panel’s recommendations update IDSA guidance from 2005, when Dr. Galgiani also was the lead author. Dr. Ampel is UA professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases, a member of the Valley Fever Center for Excellence and an infectious diseases specialist at the Southern Arizona VA Healthcare System. Dr. Lisse recently retired as UA professor in the Division of Rheumatology and has joined Eli Lilly & Co.

Working to Protect People and Pets

At the UA Valley Fever Center for Excellence, researchers are working on a vaccine for humans as well as for pets, in addition to improved rapid detection methodologies and treatment therapies for the disease.

For patients, Dr. Galgiani runs a Valley Fever Clinic at Banner – University Medical Center Tucson.

The UA Valley Fever Center for Excellence and Banner – UMC hospitals in Tucson and Phoenix are participating in clinical trials that began earlier this year related to a National Institutes of Health-funded study for which Duke University’s Human Vaccine Institute was awarded $5 million to support research into Valley Fever pneumonia. That funding could grow to $9 million if all contract options are exercised. Principal investigators in a $2-million subcontract for Arizona are Dr. Galgiani and Ken Knox, MD, UA professor of medicine and immunobiology, chief of the Division of Pulmonary, Allergy, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine and the Murray and Clara Walker Memorial Endowed Chair in Emphysema.

The UA Valley Fever Center for Excellence also promotes various community information and health-care professional programs across Arizona during Valley Fever Awareness Week, which this year will be Nov. 12-20. Events include the Annual Farness Lecture at the UA College of Medicine – Tucson that will be held Wednesday, Nov. 16, with invited speaker Janis E. Blair, MD, chair of the Division of Infectious Diseases, Mayo Clinic, Phoenix, whose research includes Valley Fever.

A reference booklet, “Valley Fever (Coccidoidomycosis)—Tutorial for Primary Care Physicians,” that includes facts physicians and other health-care professionals need about Valley Fever, including how to diagnose it and what to do when a new infection is discovered, has been produced by the UA Valley Fever Center for Excellence and is available through the medical societies of Pima and Maricopa Counties, Arizona Medical Association, Arizona Department of Health Services and U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. An electronic copy of the booklet—as well as the new IDSA Guidelines—also is posted on the UA Valley Fever Center for Excellence website under the “Clinicians” tab at www.vfce.arizona.edu

About the UA Valley Fever Center for Excellence

The Arizona Board of Regents established the UA Valley Fever Center for Excellence in 1996 for the benefit of the entire state. Based at the University of Arizona Health Sciences campus, which includes the UA College of Medicine – Tucson, the center has developed a research base that includes the state’s three universities, and an information program for the scientific community and the general public. Much of its research is conducted at the UA BIO5 Institute. For more information: www.facebook.com/ValleyFeverCenterArizona

About the UA College of Medicine – Tucson

The University of Arizona College of Medicine – Tucson is advancing health and wellness through state-of-the-art medical education programs, groundbreaking research and advancements in patient care in Arizona and across the United States. Founded in 1967, the College ranks among the top medical schools in the nation for research and primary care and is leading the way in academic medicine through its partnership with Banner – University Medicine, a new division of one of the largest nonprofit health-care systems in the country. For more information: http://medicine.arizona.edu

About the University of Arizona Health Sciences

The University of Arizona Health Sciences is the statewide leader in biomedical research and health professions training. The UA Health Sciences includes the UA Colleges of Medicine (Phoenix and Tucson), Nursing, Pharmacy and Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health, with main campus locations in Tucson and the growing Phoenix Biomedical Campus in downtown Phoenix. From these vantage points, the UA Health Sciences reaches across the state of Arizona and the greater Southwest to provide cutting-edge health education, research, patient care and community outreach services. A major economic engine, the UA Health Sciences employs almost 5,000 people, has nearly 1,000 faculty members and garners more than $126 million in research grants and contracts annually. For more information: http://uahs.arizona.edu

ALSO SEE:
“New IDSA Guidance for PCPs on Coccidioidomycosis Led by UA Valley Fever Center Director” | DOM News, Posted July 29, 2016

Release Date: 
08/29/2016 - 4:00am
Original Story: