Black fungus or mucormycosis that can be fatal has become a cause for concern for doctors across the country as mnore and more patients of Covid-19 are contracting the disease.
The Times of India reported that at least 5,500 cases have of black fungus were reported across the country and 126 deaths. With 90 people dying of mucormycosis, Maharashtra reported the highest such deaths from India.
The report said that Haryana had 14 causalities. While eight such death were reported from Lucknow, no data was available from the rest of the state. Jharkhand reported four deaths. Several states have reported shortages of amphotericin B, which is the anti-fungal medication used to treat patients with mucormycosis.
Owing to the growing alarm across the country, states such as Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat have declared the black fungus outbreak as an epidemic, while others such as Haryana, Karnataka and Rajasthan have acknowledged it as a ‘notifiable disease.’ The Epidemic Diseases Act makes it mandatory for cases to be reported to the state government, accounting for a better grasp on figures within the state.
While the presence of the fungus has been felt as early as April, several states have declared a shortage or fast depletion of amphotericin B. Maharashtra, which currently accounts for approximately 1,500 of the nation’s cases, has long run out of the medication but has only received 16,000 of the required 1.50 lakh vials from the centre.
Meanwhile, Gujarat and Odisha seem to be suffering from the same plight, while Karnataka has placed an order for 20,000 more vials. Madhya Pradesh too received only 4,800 vials of the 24,000 that had been ordered for the state. Medical education minister Vishwas Sarang, however, has assured citizens that the state government was ‘in talks’ with both the centre and around 8 pharma companies to combat the shortage.
Around 5,500 active black fungus cases have been recorded in the nation so far, while India deals with the second wave of the coronavirus.
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