Cases Of Post-Covid Mucormycosis Are Increasing, Says AIIMS Chief

Mumbai: AIIMS chief Dr Randeep Guleria said on Saturday that a black fungal infection called mucormycosis is not a new infection, but the number of cases has suddenly increased due to COVID-19 and its treatment.

The spores of this fungus are present in the air, in the soil, and sometimes in food, but the virus is deficient.

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Some states are reporting more than 400 to 500 cases, Dr Guleria said. The AIIMS chief urged hospitals to pay more attention to infection control, saying that secondary fungal infections are causing more morbidity and mortality.

“So wearing masks is very important, especially if you go to a construction site,” said Guleria, adding that there are 23 cases of infection in AIIMS Delhi. Of these, 20 patients are still infected with COVID-19.

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“This disease (Mucormycosis) can affect the face, infecting nose, the orbit of the eye, or brain, which can cause even vision loss. It can also spread to the lung,” he said adding that Covid infection, diabetes and the misuse of steroid during the treatment of Covid-19 are responsible for the increase in the infection.

If steroid abuse can be controlled and the patient does not have high blood sugar, then the post-covid fungal infection will likely be rare. Due to steroids, the blood sugar level can reach 300-400, the AIIMS chief said that a mild to moderate dose of the steroid is sufficient and has to be administered only for five to 10 days.

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During pre-covid time, this infection was reported only in diabetic patients with uncontrolled blood pressure levels or in those undergoing transplantation of chemotherapy due to immunosuppressive drugs. But due to COVID-19, the infection has become common now, Dr Guleria said.

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