Prophylaxis failure is associated with a specific Pneumocystis carinii genotype.

To investigate the possible association between Pneumocystis carinii types and various clinical and demographic parameters, we used molecular typing to analyze 93 bronchoalveolar lavage specimens from patients with P. carinii pneumonia (PCP). Multivariate regression analysis revealed an association between being infected with a specific P. carinii genotype and receiving anti-PCP prophylaxis (odds ratio, 4.4; 95% confidence interval, 1.0-18.6; P=.05), although no association with a specific drug was detected.