270 deadly black fungus cases reported in Pune

Pune, May 14: Around 270 cases of Mucormycosis, a rare but dangerous fungal infection, have been reported so far in Pune district, prompting a government task force to come up with a set of standard operating procedures (SOPs) for patient management in hospitals, officials said on Friday.

Symptoms of Mucormycosis, also known as black fungus, include headache, fever, pain under the eyes, nasal or sinus congestion and partial loss of vision.

It affects the sinuses, the brain and the lungs and can be life-threatening in people who are diabetic or have suppressed immunity.

Mucormycosis, whose treatment requires a multidisciplinary approach, has come in focus during the pandemic as it has been detected in some

◗ SYMPTOMS OF Mucormycosis, also known as black fungus, include headache, fever, pain under the eyes, nasal or sinus congestion and partial loss of vision

recovering and recovered coronavirus patients.

Saurabh Rao, divisional commissioner, Pune division, said so far around 270 cases have been reported in various hospitals in the district.

“Our divisional task force member Dr Bharat Purandare has come up with a detailed SOPs for management of Mucormycosis. The SOPs have been vetted by the task force,” he said.

“The SOPs have been issued to all hospitals in the state. We have asked hospitals to follow the guidelines mentioned in the SOPs,” the IAS officer said.

The SOPs contain details about clinical management, treatment protocols, patient management, surgical intervention and medication, Mr Rao said.

Asked about fatality rate among Mucormycosis patients in Pune district, the senior bureaucrat said they are collating data in this regard. It is a rare fungal infection. Before Covid also, we used to see such cases, but their number was very low.

During the first wave of Covid, we came across hardly four to five cases.

“But during the second wave of Covid, we are seeing quite a number of cases, said Dr Abhishek Ghosh, a microvascular reconstructive surgeon at Noble Hospital.

He said so far around 40 cases of Mucormycosis have been reported in his hospital.