Delhi: Black fungus now an epidemic
The Delhi government on Thursday declared mucormycosis an epidemic and made it mandatory for all health care institutions in the city to report suspected and confirmed cases of the infection to them, amid a sharp spike in incidences of the fungal infection over the past few weeks as a complication among patients with Covid-19.
The move comes a week after the Centre urged all states to categorise the infection as a notifiable disease after an increase in cases following the second wave of Covid-19 in April.
Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday said over 620 patients are being treated for mucormycosis, known commonly as black fungus, in city hospitals, and flagged a severe shortage of Amphotericin-b, the only last-line drug used to treat the fungal infection.
Instances of black fungus are extremely rare, and major hospitals in the Capital like the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and Sir Ganga Ram Hospital see between six and 15 cases of the infection in an entire year, usually.
The Delhi Epidemic Diseases (Mucormycosis) Regulations 2021, which will remain in force for a year, forbid any organisation from “spreading information or material” or using “print or electronic or any other form of media for mucormycosis” without prior permission from the health department.
This means that hospitals will not be allowed to share, without approval, details about infections and the number of cases with the press. However, it is unclear whether rule this will cover requests for medicines and other information put out on the social media.
As of Tuesday, the city received 3,850 vials of Amphotericin-b, against a requirement of over 30,000 doses a week, said senior officials in Delhi’s health department.
The Delhi government estimates that the city will need around 100,000 doses of the medicine over the next two months.
To help address these shortages, the Delhi high court on Thursday allowed the duty free import of Amphotericin-b, on furnishing a bond by the importers till the Centre takes a decision on the tax waiver.
The regulations, Dr Nutan Mundeja, Delhi’s director general of health services, said all health care facilities in the Capital must follow guidelines issued by the Union health ministry and the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) on screening, diagnosis, and management of mucormycosis.
The order also mandates that a committee be constituted under every chief district medical officer (CDMO) comprising doctors specialising in internal medicine, ophthalmology, ENT, as well as epidemiologists to review instances of individuals or organisations disobeying the order.