Chhattisgarh: Black Fungus Cases Creating a Tension Aura in the State; Standard Protocol of Treatment Issued

Raipur: Among the second wave of the coronavirus, reports of a rare fungal infection among the COVID-19 patients in India have come to the fore now. Overdose of steroids as part of Covid-19 treatment to temporarily suppress the immune system has drastically increased the occurrence of mucormycosis.

Chhattisgarh health ministry reported 77 cases of the Post COVID triggered infection admitted in the hospitals. Raipur AIIMS reported its first mortality due to the black fungus. Dr Ajay Behra, the nodal officer pronounced the infected female dead who was a resident of the Koriya district.

Karuna Verma, a resident of Manendragarh Civil Line in the Koriya district. After recovering from COVID, the patient reverted to the hospital five days ago, in view of increasing infection. The patient was operated, yet she collapsed due to a cardiac arrest.

Currently, 61 patients are being treated in Raipur AIIMS, 12 out 61 underwent forced operations of the brain and eye as the infection damaged these organs. Dr Nitin Nagrikar, AIIMS director is heading the team created especially for treating black fungus patients.

The Health Department has written to the Chief Medical Officers, Civil Surgeons, and Hospital Superintendents of all districts directing them to ensure microbiological surveillance in hospitals. With this, a standard protocol of treatment of the disease has been issued to all hospitals. The Department of Food and Drug Administration, directing the pharmaceutical stores to inform the sale of essential drugs, stated,” The infection of black fungus is on the rise in Chhattisgarh. To prevent this, balanced distribution of Posaconazole and Amphotericin-B medicine is necessary. In such a situation, all wholesalers should not distribute these medicines without informing the Department. Legal action has also been warned for non-reporting of the drug.