1.)                      Black fungus or Mucormycosis:


What is Mucormycosis or black fungus? 






Mucormycosis is a fungal infection triggered by coronavirus. Black fungus or Mucormycosis has been a cause of disease and death of patients in transplants, ICUs and immunodeficient patients for since long.


What causes Mucormycosis?


People catch Mucormycosis by coming in contact with the fungal spores in the environment. It can also develop on the skin after the fungus enters the skin through a cut, scrape, burn, or other types of skin trauma.

The disease is being detected among patients who are recovering or have recovered from COVID-19


What are the Symptoms?




According to an advisory issued by the Indian Council of Medical Research, the following conditions in COVID-19 patients increase the risk of Mucormycosis infection:


1) Uncontrolled diabetes

2) Weakening of immune system due to use of steroids

3) Prolonged ICU/hospital stay

4) Co-morbidities / post organ transplant / cancer

5) Voriconazole therapy (used to treat serious fungal infections)




How to prevent Mucormycosis?


1) Use masks if you are visiting dusty construction sites

2) Wear shoes, long trousers, long sleeve shirts and gloves while handling soil (gardening), moss or manure

3) Maintain personal hygiene, including thorough scrub bath

4) The disease can be managed by controlling diabetes, discontinuing immunomodulation drugs, reducing steroids and extensive surgical debridement- to remove all necrotic materials, according to the advisory.








Do's

·         Control hyperglycemia

·         Monitor blood glucose level post-COVID-19 discharge and also in diabetics

·         Use steroid judiciously

·         Use clean, sterile water for humidifiers during oxygen therapy

·         Use antibiotics/antifungals judiciously


Don'ts


·         Do not miss warning signs and symptoms

·         Do not consider all the cases with blocked nose as cases of bacterial sinusitis, particularly in the context of immunosuppression and/or COVID-19 patients on immunomodulatory

·         Do not hesitate to seek aggressive investigations, as appropriate (KOH staining & microscopy, culture, MALDITOF), for detecting fungal ethology

·         Do not lose crucial time to initiate treatment for Mucormycosis