As covid cases decline in Mumbai, city reports aspergillosis cases

Along with black fungus, the cases of Aspergillosis, a fungal infection, is also on the rise in Mumbai. People who have diabetes as well as covid infection along with use of steroids in their treatment are causing patients to suffer from aspergillosis infection. Two patients with the infection have recently been found at Zen Hospital. A 50-year-old male patient was admitted to the ICU with post-covid lung fibrosis and pneumothorax. The patients didn't show any black fungus or mucormycosis symptoms.

The patient underwent nasal endoscopy and was diagnosed with aspergillosis. There are many patients like him who are fighting against this fungal infection.

Aspergillosis is an infection caused by a type of mold (fungus). The illnesses resulting from aspergillosis infection usually affect the respiratory system, but their signs and severity vary greatly. The mold that triggers the illnesses, aspergillus, is everywhere — indoors and outdoors.

People with weak immune systems, uncontrolled diabetes, organ transplants, certain blood cancers, as well as those taking steroids, have a higher risk of developing the infection. Dr. Shalaka Dighe, ENT Surgeon, Zen Multispeciality Hospital, Chembur, said that nasal endoscopy is being used to diagnose fungal infections in all post-covid patients in a timely manner. She said the hospital is using an anti-fungal drug called Voriconazole to treat aspergillosis. Voriconazole is used in the treatment of many serious fungal infections.

One of them is invasive aspergillosis, which starts in your lungs and gradually spreads from the bloodstream to other organs. This fungal infection is not as new as the coronavirus; But there has been a worrying increase in the number of such cases. Patients after covid, especially those who have taken steroids or long-term broad-spectrum antibiotics, or who have been hospitalized for a long time, should control their blood sugar levels, as well as runny nose, eye pain, eye swelling, and swelling of the cheeks. Dr. Dighe said.