The advisory for ‘screening, diagnosis and management’ of the disease mentions that mucormycosis, if uncared for, may turn fatal. Sinuses or lungs of such individuals get affected after fungal spores are inhaled from the air.
All India Institute of Medical Sciences-Patna (AIIMS-P) and Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences (IGIMS) here have been designated as ‘centre of excellence’ for treatment and effective management of mucormycosis or black fungus disease.
Additional chief secretary (health) Pratyaya Amrit said letters in this regard were sent by the health department to the administration of the two major hospitals on Tuesday.
The decision was taken in the wake of spike in the cases of the fatal disease. Amrit said in a briefing on Tuesday that Bihar has registered 56 cases of black fungus so far, including 24 at AIIMS-Patna and 10 at IGIMS.
He said AIIMS-P and IGIMS have been designated as centres of excellence for mucormycosis based on guidelines issued by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) on May 9. Mucormycosis is a fungal infection that mainly affects people who are on medication for other health problems that reduces their ability to fight environmental pathogens.
The advisory for ‘screening, diagnosis and management’ of the disease mentions that mucormycosis, if uncared for, may turn fatal. Sinuses or lungs of such individuals get affected after fungal spores are inhaled from the air.
“The establishment of centre of excellence for treatment of mucormycosis at a healthcare facility requires several specialists, including a microbiologist, biochemist, ENT specialist, dentist and orthopaedic. The two hospitals – AIIMS-P and IGIMS –fulfil all thse criteria. Hence, they have been made the centres of excellence for treatment of black fungus,” Amrit said.
He added few hospitals in the state have been sent Amphotericin-B injection for treatment of patients suffering from mucormycosis. “Based on recommendations from a committee comprising experts from AIIMS-P and IGIMS, a letter was sent to the Union ministry of health and family welfare on May 14 to allow use of Amphotericin-B injections in treatment of mucormycosis. We were given the approval for the same on Monday, though a formal letter for the same is expected to arrive anytime,” Amrit said.
Earlier on May 16, health minister Mangal Pandey had tweetd that 6,000 doses of Amphotericin-B injection have been sent by the health department to various government and private health facilities in the state to treat black fungus.
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