Susceptibility of Candida species strains to five antifungal agents: comparison between agar dilution and disk diffusion tests.

The in vitro activity of five antifungal agents were compared against 180 Candida strains. The drugs were: two imidazoles (miconazole and ketoconazole), nystatin, 5-fluorocytosine and amphotericin B. Agar dilution and disk diffusion methods were used. Nystatin, miconazole and amphotericin B were the most active agents. 5-fluorocytosine had high activity except against C. albicans serotype B, of which a high percentage were resistant. Finally, a good correlation between the two methods was observed.