At least 89 have succumbed to black fungus so far, says Jain

New Delhi: Health Minister Satyendar Jain on Thursday said that hospitals in the Capital have reported over 1,044 cases of mucormycosis so far, of which 89 have succumbed to the deadly but rare fungal infection and 92 have made a full recovery. He said Amphotericin-B - the drug used to treat the infection — continues to be in short supply

Mucormycosis is a rare fungal infection being increasingly reported in patients who have recovered from Covid-19. The disease strikes those with compromised immunity due to causes such as diabetes, kidney disorders, liver or cardiac disorders, age-related issues, those on auto-immune disease medications or those with rheumatoid arthritis.

This is the first time the Delhi government has publicly announced the data on mucormycosis (commonly dubbed as black fungus cases) in the city since cases started shooting up in the wake of the brutal impact of the second wave of the pandemic here.

The disease, which doctors say has a mortality rate of over 50 per cent, has been reported in such large numbers for the first time in years. As a result of the crisis that the city is dealing with, L-G Anil Baijal's office had recently declared it as a notifiable disease under the Epidemic Diseases Act, making it mandatory for hospitals to report any case.

However, the challenge for the city currently remains to meet the demand for Amphotericin-B - the drug used to treat black fungus.

With court submissions by the Central government already revealing that its domestic production capacity and imports will not be enough to meet the rising demand, the Delhi High Court has already directed the Central government to decide an age-wise prioritisation of allocating the available supply to the patients, remarking that if need be, younger people should be prioritised for the drug's usage.

In fact, several black fungus patients have already lost their eyes to the infections due to insufficient supply of the drug to the hospitals. While the Delhi High Court continues to monitor the drug shortage, the Supreme Court of India bench that is hearing Covid matters has also taken notice of the issue and asked the Centre to clarify how it is augmenting the supply.

Doctors in the city who are treating mucormycosis patients have said that most of their patients had contracted Covid-19 in the one month before the mucormycosis infection manifested. One senior doctor at AIIMS has said that 80 to 90 per cent of his mucormycosis patients were on heavy steroid therapy while being treated for Covid-19 and had high blood sugar during treatment.