With the mid-stream urine obtained from 100 patients of diabetes mellitus and 100 non-diabetics, the incidence of fungus infection was studied. All specimens were cultured on Sabouraud's glucose agar and Mycocel glucose agar at 25-27°C for 7 days.
The results were as follows:
1) 31% of the diabetic patients showed urine positive for fungus growth as compared with 12% of non-diabetics. (p<0.01)
In the cases of women, 38.3% of diabetics had urinary fungus infection, as compared with 4.0% of non-diabetics. The difference was more significant than that of men (24.5% to 14.7%).
2) The fungi detected were Candida species in 42 cases, and only one case was Aspergillus species.
None of them, that had urine positive for fungi growth, complained of symptoms of urinary infection.
3) In the case of the diabetics, urinary fungus infection appears to have no relation to increasing age and duration of diabetes mellitus.
4) The incidence of urinary fungus infection tends to increase as diabetes mellitus becomes severe.
5) The higher incidence of urinary fungus infection was found in the group that had more than 200 mg/dl fasting blood glucose level.
6) The incidence of urinary fungus infection was high in the group that had urine positive for glucose. (+-++by ‘Uristix’) No correlation was noted between the fungus infection and the urine protein.
7) Insulin and oral hypoglycemic agents seemed to have no effects on the incidence of urinary fungus infection.