Apart from the Coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic, India is also struggling with one of its serious complications that are called mucormycosis or black fungus.
Now, what is Black fungus?
It is a rare infection called mucormycosis that is proving fatal to patients suffering or recovering from Covid-19. If its progression is not checked early, 50-80 per cent of patients could die. Mucormycosis is a fungal infection that mainly affects people who are on medication for other health problems that reduce their ability to fight environmental pathogens. Sinuses or lungs of such individuals get affected after fungal spores are inhaled from the air.
What causes Mucormycosis?
Mucormycosis or black fungus is a complication caused by a fungal infection. People catch mucormycosis by coming in contact with the fungal spores in the environment. It can also develop on the skin after the fungus enters the skin through a cut, scrape, burn, or other types of skin trauma.
The disease is being detected among patients who are recovering or have recovered from COVID-19. Moreover, anyone who is diabetic and whose immune system is not functioning well needs to be on the guard against this.
Black fungus cases have shown a mortality rate as high as 50%; Maharashtra alone has reported at least 50 deaths, and other states, such as Madhya Pradesh, have also reported deaths.
The condition may be reaching epidemic proportions currently because of Covid-19, but mucormycosis was not unheard of in India even in the pre-Covid era.
