Mucormycosis is a rare type of infection caused by a fungus named micromycetes. These fungi are commonly found everywhere in the environment and infect those with a lower immune response. It sometimes affects those whose immune system has been damaged due to a sudden disease or any medication taken to treat a disease. This type of condition is also true for COVID patients, as reported by BBC news.
COVID patients of India are seen to be infected with this fungus very recently. Such an attack by a microscopic organism amidst a pandemic caused by another microscopic organism is a threat to society and the population’s well-being. It again raises fingers and questions the government on how to handle these situations when even the ongoing one has been out of control for so long, turning the entire country into a huge death bed.
Mucormycosis: How are the molds triggered?
Doctors believe that the steroids trigger these molds that the patients are prescribed during the time of COVID. These steroids are indeed helpful in dealing with the quick improvement health of the patients. They decrease the inflammation in the lungs and also helps the damage caused by an excessive rush of antibodies inside a patient’s body during the infection caused by the coronavirus.
These are the helpful ways they work, but while doing these, they also increase the patient’s blood sugar levels and weaken the immune system. So now, a patient whose immune system has been tired and worn after fighting a deadly virus is again weakened by a medicine. This lower immunity allows the molds to attack the patients very easily.
Harms imposed by the molds:
From Mumbai to Bengaluru, this mold has been reported to attack anyone with a weak immune system from young to middle-aged to old. The patients infected by it either dies or becomes handicapped with an eye removed to save their lives.
The symptoms of such an attack include a bleeding nose with black patches around it, redness and swelling of the eyes, and vision loss. The only treatment against this is an injection costing about Rs 3500 per dose for about two months. Thus, the treatment is costly for most of the Indian population.
Most of the patients also report the case late due to misunderstanding the severity of it. All these lead to more deaths and more eye losses due to Mucormycosis. Let us hope that this mold does not become a considerable concern in the coming days and stays limited or prevented through proper medication.
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