SevenHills Hospital starts in-depth study of black fungus patients

To comprehend the underlying condition of patients suffering from mucormycosis, the SevenHills Hospital has initiated a study on 42 patients who were admitted to the hospital for treatment of the very ailment. The study focuses on the epidemiological characteristics, treatment protocol, requirements of oxygen and exposure to environmental particles among the patients. The results are expected within two weeks.

As per the data provided by the state health department, Mumbai city and suburbs have recorded 739 and 237 such cases, respectively, so far. Out of which, there are only two active cases each in city and suburb.

Dr MahaRudra Kumbhar, incharge of SevenHills hospital, confirmed the development of the study which has been started for the last 15 days. He said the mucormycosis outbreak was one of the most devastating after-effects of excessive Covid-19 medication and its direct impact on the immune system. The doctors will be checking how many patients were from Mumbai or outside and they will also check for the underlying conditions. They will also look for the predisposal factors to understand the cause of mucormycosis.

“We have the samples of more than 40 patients who had suffered from mucormycosis. The study is underway and within two weeks it will be completed and we will publish it in the Journal. Moreover, we have started a post-covid wellness program after seeing patients coming with complaints like fatigue, lethargy, sudden rise in pulse rate and sugar, breathlessness, palpitations, etc post-recovery,” he said.

Dr Nilam Sathe, head of unit and associate professor, ENT department, KEM Hospital, said it is a good move taken by the civic body in conducting a study on mucormycosis patients as it is very necessary to understand the cause of black fungus as mucormycosis is also known. They also conducted a similar study at the KEM hospital where 90 patients were part of the study.