Infectious Disease Compendium

Beta D Glucan

Diagnostic Test

Used to diagnose the following:

Candida spp.

Acremonium

Aspergillus spp.

Coccidioides immitis

Fusarium spp.

Histoplasma capsulatum

Trichosporon spp.

Sporothrix schenckii

Saccharomyces cerevisiae

Pneumocystis

Nocardia (Five published cases, two in PubMed and three in my blog).

Not

Cryptococcus, Absidia, Mucor, Rhizopus, Blastomyces dermatitidis.

False Postive

Hemodialysis with cellulose membranes, administration of human blood products such as immunoglobulins or albumin, amoxicillin-clavulanate, presence of serious bacterial infections, surgical gauzes containing glucan, and severe mucositis.

No longer piperacillin-tazobactam, where improved manufacturing has removed contamination with galactomannan (PubMed).

It will be elevated for 5 days following bowel surgery (PubMed).

False Negative

Beta D glucan is sucked up by WBC, so a more reliable test in leukopenics.

Pearls

The higher the value and a lack of response to medications are a bad prognostic sign.

No surprise to me, half the time when it was ordered by non-ID doctors it was inappropriate (PubMed). So if you think you want to order it, perhaps call ID first. It is kind of expensive.

Curious Cases

Relevant links to my Medscape blog

Uncertain Certainty

In Medicine You Can Never Know Enough

Not the other white meat

More Fleas and Lice

A Steel Boot

I Knew That. Really.

Last Update: 12/17/18.