Isolation and identification of Candida from the oral cavity.

A number of methods of sampling the oral cavity for the presence of candida have been developed. Such techniques play an important role in the diagnosis and management of oral candidosis. In the past, identification of candida isolated from the oral cavity has usually been limited to the genus Candida or to the species C. albicans. However, with the recognition that Candida species differ in the production of putative virulence factors and sensitivity to antifungal agents, greater emphasis has been placed on identification of isolates to species level. As a result a range of commercially available systems for yeast identification can now be used in conjunction with traditional identification procedures.