Anti fungal drugs & flight

Fungal Infections are common and can be local or systemic. Due to their resistance to common antibiotics there are few drugs for systemic fungal infections. A complete knowledge of antifungal medications is necessary regarding the critical conditions of flight. In the military section: The Canadian Air force allows the use of oral antifungals like terbinafin and flucconazole for non pilots if no adverse reactions occur after being grounded for one week. Pilots who use these drugs don’t receive the permission for flight even as copilot or with copilot assistance. In the civil section: FAA allows the use of oral antifungals like terbinafin، grisefulvin and itraconazol for the treatment of chronic onycomycoses in the absence of adverse effects. It is noteworthy that in the presence of systemic fungal infections which are potentially life threatening، the decision about the flight status depends firstly on the severity of the disease and secondly on the type of medication; and is the duty of the flight surgeon.