Bengaluru: While the coronavirus cases are slowing down in Karnataka, the surge in the number of black fungus or Mucormycosis cases has left the BS Yediyurappa government in the state worried. “The country used to record about 100 cases of black fungus a year earlier but the state has recorded about 700 cases in the last week. This surge has been a cause of anxiety,” said Deputy CM and state COVID task force head Dr CN Ashwath Narayan.
Following the rise in black fungus cases, the Deputy CM has directed the treatment protocol committee to find its source and track whether the rise in the Mucormycosis cases is linked to the use of industrial oxygen and its possible contamination. A team of microbiologists will start to work towards this from Monday.
Dr. Sampath Chandra Prasad Rao, skull surgeon, Manipal Hospital (Bengaluru) made the presentation about mucormycosis at the meeting of the treatment protocol committee that took place yesterday and stated that the probable reasons for the surge in black fungus may be due to ”contamination either due to low-quality cylinders or low-quality piping system at the ICU level in hospitals”. He also said that it may be caused because of “contamination at the industry level from where the oxygen is being supplied due to low standard sterilization” or any other such reasons. This may be also due to the usage of ordinary tap water in ventilators, Rao said.
The Deputy Chief Minister asked the microbiologists to record the clinical history of the patients affected by mucormycosis and to do the data analytics. Simultaneously, he has also instructed for tracking the source of oxygen supply at the hospital, quality of piping and cylinders and quality of water used for ventilators, and also quality at the source point of supply at the industry and plant level.
(With ANI Inputs)