Bone death report in Mumbai, doctors predict it as a threat after Black fungus

Mumbai: The mucormycosis cases are increasing in the country and in a new development, three confirmed cases of avascular necrosis or death of bone tissues after COVID-19 have been scientifically reported from Mumbai. Avascular Necrosis(AVN) could be the next debilitating condition among post-COVID patients after the outbreak of mucormycosis or black fungus two months back. Doctors fear that more cases of AVN are likely in the next few months.

According to a report in a national daily, Hinduja Hospital, Mahim, treated the three young (under 40) patients who developed necrosis two months after they were treated for COVID. “These patients developed pain in their femur bone (the highest part of the thigh bone) and, since they were doctors, they recognized the symptoms and rushed for treatment,’’ said Dr. Sanjay Agarwala, medical director of Hinduja Hospital, Mahim, was quoted as saying by the newspaper.

The common factor between AVN and mucormycosis is the use of steroids, the only drug proven to help COVID-19 patients. Dr. Agarwala’s research paper, ‘Avascular necrosis as a part of long COVID-19’, was published on Saturday in the prestigious medical journal ‘BMJ Case Studies’. He said the “large-scale use of life-saving corticosteroids” in COVID-19 cases will result in a “resurgence of AVN cases”.

Meanwhile, of the 264 patients with mucormycosis, in the government hospital in Coimbatore, 30 have lost the vision in one eye, a top official of the hospital said on Sunday. All those admitted had undergone endoscopy with 110 undergoing visualization surgery, the hospital Dean Dr. N Nirmala said in a release. But 30 patients with severe infection had lost their sight in one eye, she said adding that those who had come at an early stage were totally cured of the disease.

Also, the government has allocated an additional 2,12,540 vials of Amphotericin-B to states, Union Territories (UTs), and central institutions, Union minister Sadananda Gowda recently said. Amphotericin-B is used to treat black fungus, which damages the nose, eyes, sinuses, and sometimes even the brain.

“Additional 2,12,540 vials of #LiposomalAmphotericinB have been allocated to all the States/UTs & Central Institutions today. So far, approximately 10 lakh vials have been allocated across the country," Gowda had tweeted. The doctors in India are documenting an alarming number of cases of mucormycosis among patients with Covid-19 and those who have recently recovered.

They believe that mucormycosis may be triggered by the use of steroids, a life-saving treatment for severe and critically ill Covid-19 patients.

(Inputs from agency)

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