India’s health ministry on Thursday wrote to all states and Union Territories asking them to declare post-Covid complication mucormycosis, or “black fungus,” a notifiable disease under the Epidemic Diseases Act 1897, ANI reported.
At least 90 people who recovered from Covid-19 have died from black fungal infection in the western Indian state of Maharashtra, The Telegraph reported.
There are currently 850 people hospitalized with mucormycosis in Maharashtra, home to India’s financial capital of Mumbai, and authorities have warned they will have to treat 5,000 patients over the next few months.
Earlier, the Telangana and Tamil Nadu governments issued orders declaring “black fungus” a notifiable disease.
On Wednesday, Rajasthan had declared the disease an “epidemic” in the state. The Madhya Pradesh government has also decided to conduct a nasal endoscopy process in Covid-19 patients and survivors who are admitted in the district hospitals and the government medical colleges.
Instances of mucormycosis – known as “black fungus” – were extremely rare before India’s second wave of Covid-19 and only affected people who were severely immunocompromised, including diabetics or those suffering from HIV/Aids.
Without early treatment, the black fungus has a mortality rate of 50%, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Preventing, and doctors in India are now being forced to remove the eyes or jaws of patients to save lives.
While data on its prevalence pre-Covid-19 is limited, the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu which has a population of 72 million only saw 9.5 cases on average annually between 2015 and 2020.
The state of Gujarat, which has a similar-sized population to Tamil Nadu, currently has at least 1,163 patients undergoing treatment at eight hospitals in five large cities.
Doctors say diabetes patients are most at risk. India has an estimated 77 million diabetics, second only to China, although millions of cases are believed to be undiagnosed.
It is also suggested that long-term oxygenation of critical Covid-19 patients can also dry out the nasal cavity and leave someone more vulnerable to infection, particularly if hygiene practices are ignored.
The authorities in the northern state of Rajasthan, which has at least 100 active cases, have declared a mucormycosis “epidemic”, while Indian states are now scrambling to procure doses of amphotericin B, an injection that is in short supply but is the only currently available treatment.
India on Thursday reported 276,110 new coronavirus infections over the previous 24 hours, slightly higher than a day earlier but well below the 400,000 high seen at the beginning of this month in a devastating second wave.
The total caseload stands at 25.77 million, the world's second highest after the United States. Deaths rose by 3,874 overnight, taking the total tally 287,122.
