Gurgaon reports first suspected black fungus fatality — a 29-year-old man

Gurgaon: The city on Wednesday reported its first suspected mucormycosis (black fungus) death. According to the health department, a 29-year-old man who was being treated at a private hospital for Covid-19 succumbed to the infection on Wednesday. Gurgaon hospitals have so far reported 95 cases of black fungus, 44 of those in the last two days. Haryana has a total of 205 cases till now.
According to sources in the private hospital where the man was being treated, the patient, who belongs to Jhajjar, was admitted on May 15. He had complained of headache and bleeding in the nose. His right eye had been severely damaged due to the fungal infection and he had post-Covid complications too, sources said.
“We have a total of 95 cases of mucormycosis in Gurgaon. All these cases are in various hospitals across the city. We have directed hospitals to update these cases daily in the state portal. The application process for amphotericin B (the drug hospitals have been using to treat recovering Covid patients who have developed mucormycosis) has already started and hospitals will be getting approval and thereafter medicines by Thursday,” said Dr Virender Yadav, chief medical officer, Gurgaon.
The health department of Haryana had on Monday established a committee to provide antifungal drugs like amphotericin B at the earliest. All Covid hospitals requiring it for the treatment of patients will have to apply to the committee.
Doctors said the shortage of the drug is still a big worry. “The current situation of the supply of the liposomal variant of amphotericin B is very bad. We are not getting the injection from the usual suppliers or the government. We are only getting plain amphotericin B from the government, and that too with great difficulty. This variant has a higher chance of side-effects and is less effective that the liposomal variety,” said Dr Sameer Kaushal, head of ophthalmology, Artemis Hospitals.
“The process for getting supply from the government is also very tedious and needs to be streamlined. The government supplies only a day’s worth of medication for a patient, and that too after a significant delay. These patients need to be on medication as soon as possible and waiting for the government’s approval and supply delays the process. The helpline number hasn’t been of any help either,” he added.
Doctors are now prescribing other antifungals. “Other antifungals which are used in the treatment of mucormycosis are isavuconazole and posaconazole. These are available in the form of injections as well as oral medications. When a patient can’t be given amphotericin B, these are the drugs which can be given. A combination of these antifungals plus surgical debridement (removal of infected tissue) is used to treat mucormycosis. Both medicines are available in India,” said Dr Shashank Vashist, ENT consultant at Columbia Asia Hospital.