Abstract

MUCORMYCOSIS IN COVID PATIENTS: AN OPPORTUNIST INFECTION CAUSED ANOTHER THREAT TO PANDEMIC

Nilanjana Bhattacharyya Nath* and Debdeep Das

ABSTRACT

COVID-19 has been associated with a wide range of opportunisticsinfections. Mucormycosis is one of them. This is an uncommon but afatal fungal infection that usually affects patients with alteredimmunity. In India, from 3rd January, 2020 to 27th August, 2021, therehave been 32,603,188 confirmed cases of COVID-19 with 436,861deaths reported to WHO. The second wave of COVID-19 had affectedIndia seriously and cases of rhino-orbital mucormycosis in people aspost Covid illness increased sharply. Mucormycosis is anangioinvasive disease caused by mold fungi of the genus Rhizopus,Mucor, Rhizomucor, Cunninghamella and Absidia. Various riskfactors for mucormycosis are immunocompromised host, uncontrolleddiabetes mellitus especially diabetic ketoacidosis, treatment withglucocorticoids, hematological malignancies, hematopoietic stem celltransplantation, treatment with iron chelating therapies, AIDS,trauma/burns etc. Mucomycosis can be rhino-orbital-cerebral,pulmonary, gastrointestinal, and cutaneous. Thus, there is an urgent need to address thispublic health concern by having nationwide surveillance, diagnostic and management systemof the disease, along with public awareness and education to combat the opportunist infectionof mucormycosis in the country.

Keywords: Mucormycosis, pathophysiology, Post covid effect, Immunocompromised patients.