Doctors at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital in Delhi have identified multiple cases of fungal infections in the recovery of coronavirus patients, according to a PTI report. According to the hospital authorities, half of them have lost sight. There were also several deaths. And while the disease itself isn’t new, they say COVID-19, which causes mucormycosis, is new territory.
“In the past 15 days, ENT surgeons have observed 13 cases of COVID-19-induced mucormycosis in over 50 percent of patients, in which vision was lost and the nose and jawbones had to be removed,” the hospital said in a statement .
What is mucormycosis?
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), mucormycosis is a rare but serious group of molds called mucormycetes that live throughout the environment. They mostly affect people with health problems or people who take drugs that affect the body’s ability to fight germs and diseases. COVID-19 patients, especially those with severe comorbidities, are therefore more susceptible to the fungal infection.
Information from published mucormycosis cases is cited on the CDC website, which suggests that the overall mortality rate is 54%. The rate varies depending on the patient’s underlying disease, as well as the type of fungus and the area of the body affected.