NO COVID LINK IN 32 OF 158 BLACK FUNGUS CASES IN PUNJAB
Any person who has taken excessive steroids for treatment of other diseases can contract the disease, says nodal officer for mucormycosis
CHANDIGARH : Not all mucormycosis or black fungus patients in Punjab are those who recovered from Covid-19.
According to health officials, out of 158 confirmed cases of mucormycosis in the state till Tuesday afternoon, 32 had never developed Covid symptoms even as virus has emerged as the most common factor among the patients fighting the fungal infection.
CHANDIGARH : Not all mucormycosis or black fungus patients in Punjab are those who recovered from Covid-19. According to health officials, out of 158 confirmed cases of mucormycosis in the state till Tuesday afternoon, 32 had never developed Covid symptoms even as virus has emerged as the most common factor among the patients fighting the fungal infection.
State’s nodal officer for black fungus Dr Gagandeep Singh said it is not necessary that only Covid-hit patients are prone to contract it. “Any person who has taken excessive steroids for treatment of other disease due to which he has become immunecompromised can contract the disease. Our experts are analysing every case minutely,” said the nodal officer.
The nodal officer said it’s not a contagious disease and is curable if the patient gets treatment in time. According to media bulletin of mucormycosis, out of a total 158 patients in Punjab, 22 belong to other states. Of the 21 deaths, two patients were from outside the state.
Amphotericin-B injection shortage another worry
The shortage of Amphotericin-B injections being administered to treat the mucormycosis patients has added to the woes of the state health authorities. So far, the fungus has claimed 21 lives in the state.
According to a senior health department functionary, the Centre on Tuesday sent 200 Amphotericin-B injections to Punjab against a daily requirement of 700 as 137 patients are availing treatment for the disease in different hospitals. Doctors say each patient needs 4-5 injections a day.
Keeping the existing scenario in mind, the Punjab government’s expert committee on black fungus led by Dr RPS Sibia, professor and head, department of medicine, Government Medical College Patiala, on Tuesday discussed alternative drugs to treat the fungus.
According to a senior health official, the National Health Mission officials have already been given the task to procure some alternative drugs suggested by the experts from the open market. The expert committee
on Tuesday reportedly also invited Prof Arunaloke Chakrabarti, head of department of medical microbiology, PGIMER, Chandigarh , for his suggestions on the issue.
Maximum 29 under treatment in Bathinda
BATHINDA: Twenty-nine patients are undergoing treatment for black fungus at various hospitals in Bathinda city.
Chief medical officer Dr TS Dhillon said of these patients, 13 are from Bathinda while the rest are from different districts of south Punjab. All these patients were tested positive for Covid-19, he added.
Dhillon said most of these patients are being treated at Adesh Medical College and Hospital and other private institutes. The All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Bathinda, has also geared up to conduct biopsy and treatment of black fungus patients.