Antifungals

Generally speaking, antifungal drugs can work in two ways: by directly killing fungal cells or by preventing fungal cells from growing and thriving. But how do they do this?

Antifungal drugs target structures or functions that are necessary in fungal cells but not in human cells, so they can fight a fungal infection without damaging your body’s cells.

Two structures that are commonly targeted are the fungal cell membrane and the fungal cell wall. Both of these structures surround and protect the fungal cell. When either one becomes compromised, the fungal cell can burst open and die.

Antifungal drugs are very diverse. They can be given orally, as a topical treatment, or via IV. How an antifungal drug is given depends on factors like the specific drug, the type of infection you have, and the severity of your infection.

Antifungal drugs are classified by their chemical structure as well how they work. Below, we’ll discuss the different types of antifungal drugs and give some examples of the types of infections they treat.

Azoles

There are two subgroups of azole antifungals: imidazoles and triazoles.

Examples of imidazole antifungals and the conditions they treat are:

 infections of the skin and hair, Candida infections of the skin and mucous membranes, blastomycosis, histoplasmosis 

Some examples of triazoles and the conditions they treat are: 

Candida infections, including mucosal, systemic, and invasive infections; cryptococcosis 

Polyenes

Some examples of polyene antifungals are: 

various formulations are available to treat aspergillosis, blastomycosis, cryptococcosis, histoplasmosis (off-label), mucosal or invasive Candida infections, and coccidioidomycosis 

Allylamine

Some examples of Allylamine antifungals are: