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Basics

• Summary
• Start Here
• Diagnosis and Tests
• Treatments and Therapies

Learn More

• Related Issues
• Specifics
• Genetics

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• Images

Research

• Clinical Trials
• Journal Articles

Resources

• Find an Expert

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• Children
• Teenagers
• Men
• Patient Handouts

Summary

Candida is the scientific name for yeast. It is a fungus that lives almost everywhere, including in your body. Usually, your immune system keeps yeast under control. If you are sick or taking antibiotics, it can multiply and cause an infection.

Yeast infections affect different parts of the body in different ways:

• Thrush is a yeast infection that causes white patches in your mouth
• Candida esophagitis is thrush that spreads to your esophagus, the tube that takes food from your mouth to your stomach. It can make it hard or painful to swallow.
• Women can get vaginal yeast infections, causing vaginitis
• Yeast infections of the skin cause itching and rashes
• Yeast infections in your bloodstream can be life-threatening

Antifungal medicines get rid of yeast infections in most people. If you have a weak immune system, treatment might be more difficult.

Start Here

• Candidiasis Basics (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Yeast Infection (Candidiasis) (VisualDX)
• Yeast Infection (Vaginal) (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish

Diagnosis and Tests

• Fungal Culture Test (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
• Yeast Infection Tests (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish

Treatments and Therapies

• How to Use Vaginal Tablets, Suppositories, and Creams (American Society of Health-System Pharmacists)

Related Issues

• Burning Mouth Syndrome (National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research) Also in Spanish
• Yeast Infection during Pregnancy: Over-the-Counter Treatment OK? (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish

Specifics

• Candida Infection of the Bloodstream - Candidemia (American Thoracic Society) - PDF
• Oral Thrush (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
• Preventing the Spread of C. auris (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Tinea Versicolor (American Academy of Dermatology)
• Vaginal Yeast Infections (Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women's Health) Also in Spanish

Genetics

• Familial candidiasis: MedlinePlus Genetics (National Library of Medicine)

Images

• Thrush (Oral Candidiasis) in Adults (VisualDX)

Clinical Trials

• ClinicalTrials.gov: Candidiasis (National Institutes of Health)
• ClinicalTrials.gov: Candidiasis, Oral (National Institutes of Health)
• ClinicalTrials.gov: Candidiasis, Vulvovaginal (National Institutes of Health)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

• Article: Systemic Antifolate Chemotherapy Does Not Select for Fluconazole-Resistant Candida: A Multicenter...
• Article: Host targets of candidalysin.
• Article: The Role of Lactoferrin in Combating Candida spp. Infections Through Regulation...
• Yeast Infections -- see more articles

Find an Expert

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Also in Spanish
• National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases

Children

• Oral Thrush (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• Thrush (Oral Candidiasis) (VisualDX)
• Thrush and Other Candida Infections (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish

Teenagers

• Can You Get a Yeast Infection After Having Sex? (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
• Vaginal Yeast Infections (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish

Men

• Yeast Infection in Men: How Can I Tell if I Have One? (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish

Patient Handouts

• Candida infection of the skin (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Thrush - children and adults (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
• Vaginal yeast infection (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish