Now, Ghaziabad hospital reports 7 cases of ‘white fungus’ infection

GHAZIABAD: A hospital treating patients suffering from mucormycosis or black fungus infection has reported at least seven cases of invasive aspergillosis or white fungus, local authorities and doctors at the hospital confirmed.

Doctors at Harsh ENT Hospital in Raj Nagar said they have total 26 patients of fungal infection, of which histopathology reports of seven shows they are suffering from white fungus disease. Others, they said, were patients of black fungus infection.

According health department officials, these are the first cases of white fungus in the district. They said there are 41 patients of mucormycosis in Ghaziabad.

Invasive aspergillosis is a rapidly progressive, often fatal infection that occurs in patients who are severely immunosuppressed. In this case, doctors said, most patients are those who have recovered from Covid who had low immunity because of steroidal drugs they were administered to fight the coronavirus.

“White fungus or invasive aspergillosis is a post-covid complication in which infection affects lungs and causes pneumonia. It is different from the black fungus in the way that mucormycosis affects sinus, eyes and brain,” said Dr BP Tyagi, senior ENT surgeon, who is treating the patients.

“The infections are mostly found in diabetic patients. While the black fungus can be operated and taken out from eyes and sinus, white can only be treated through medicines and injections. While the black fungus patients are administered Amphotericin-b injections, patients suffering white fungus are also given posaconazole injections and tablets. All the seven patients suffering white fungus have mild to moderate symptoms,” Dr Tyagi added.

The doctors at Max Hospital, Vaishali, said they have 13 patients of black fungus and two of them are likely to get discharged on Monday.

“A couple of patients are of mild mucormycosis while others have sino-orbital-cerebral mucormycosis, where eyes and brain are also involved,” said Dr Sharad Joshi, principal consultant, department of pulmonology at Max Hospital, Vaishali.

Chief medical officer Dr NK Gupta said there are 41 patients in different Ghaziabad hospitals. “White fungus is also a form of infection and posaconazole is effective in such cases. The medicine is easily available. We have seen people who have recovered from Covid are now getting fungal infections. We have directed hospitals to ensure proper hygiene and cleaning of equipment, including the oxygen pipeline,” Dr Gupta, added.

Doctors say that patients of white fungus show Covid-like symptoms. It is diagnosed through Ct-scan or X-ray, they said.

“White fungus or invasive aspergillosis is a post-covid complication in which infection affects lungs and causes pneumonia

ENT surgeon