Even as the Union Health Ministry on Thursday in a letter to the states and Union Territories asked to make “Mucormycosis” or “black fungus” a notifiable disease under the Epidemic Diseases Act (EDA) 1897, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said that there are about 200 cases of “black fungus” in the national capital. He added that the Delhi government has decided to set up centres to treat the condition in three state-run hospitals. Meanwhile, the Gujarat government has declared Mucormycosis an epidemic.
Mucormycosis, or black fungus usually infects people whose immune system has been compromised, causing blackening or discolouration over the nose, blurred or double vision, chest pain, breathing difficulties and coughing blood.
Doctors believe that the use of steroids to treat severe Covid-19 could be causing the rash of cases because those drugs reduce immunity and push up sugar levels.
In the letter, the Union Health Ministry has stated, “The treatment of this fungal infection requires multidisciplinary approach consisting of Eye Surgeons, ENT specialists, General Surgeon, Neurosurgeon, Dental Maxillofacial surgeon etc. and institution of Amphotericin B as an antifungal medicine. You are requested to make mucormycosis a notifiable disease under Epidemic Diseases Act 1897.” Under this, all government and private health facilities, medical colleges will follow guidelines for screening, diagnosis, management of mucormycosis, issued by the union health ministry and Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR).
The ministry also asked to make it mandatory for all these facilities to report all suspected and confirmed cases to Health Department through the district level Chief Medical Officer and subsequently to the Integrated Disease Surveillance Project (IDSP) surveillance system.
“In recent times a new challenge in the form of a fungal infection namely Mucormycosis has emerged and is reported from many states amongst Covid-19 patients especially those on steroid therapy and deranged sugar control. This fungal infection is leading to prolonged morbidity and mortality among Covid-19 patients,” the letter also stated.
As Rajasthan is seeing a surge in the number of cases of black fungus, the state government on Wednesday declared the disease to be considered as an epidemic. On 18 May, the Haryana government also formed regulations called, “The Haryana Epidemic Diseases (Mucormycosis) Regulations, 2021”.
Till now, cases of black fungus have been reported in various parts of the country including Karnataka, Uttarakhand, Telangana, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Haryana and Bihar.
CM Kejriwal has said that the Delhi government will ensure adequate supply of drugs to treat this condition and spread awareness on how to prevent it. “As per reports coming in from hospitals, there are about 200 cases of black fungus in Delhi,” he said on Thrusday.
Kejriwal discussed preventive measures with officials, through which the Delhi government can raise awareness. To tackle the rising cases of black fungus, the Delhi government has dedicated three hospitals for its treatment. Dedicated centres for Mucormycosis treatment center will be established at LNJP, GTB and Rajiv Gandhi Hospital, with teams of specialized doctors constituted at each centre for efficient functioning. The Delhi government will also prepare a detailed plan and issue special SOPs on how to raise awareness amongst Covid-recovered people for the prevention of the disease.
The Delhi government will also procure medicines for the treatment of the disease from the Central government. Kejriwal said, “Delhi is the capital of the country and so, people from outside also come here for treatment. We should have a sufficient quantity of medicines to cater to everybody who is coming for the treatment of black fungus.”
Kejriwal tweeted, “Convened a meeting with officials and experts on the growing cases of black fungus disease. We also have to stop this disease from growing and those who are getting this disease have to be given better treatment as soon as possible. Some important decisions were taken in the meeting for the prevention and treatment of this disease. 1- Centers for treatment of black fungus in LNJP, GTB and Rajiv Gandhi Hospital 2- Adequate management of medicines used in its treatment 3- Spreading awareness among people about disease prevention measures.”
Meanwhile, a report from Gandhinagar said a detailed discussion on the Mucormycosis epidemic was held at a meeting of the core committee chaired by Chief Minister Vijay Rupani. During discussions at the core committee meeting, it was stated that the disease has been declared an epidemic under the Epidemic Diseases Act, 1897. In this regard, government and private hospitals and medical colleges treating the disease will now have to follow the guidelines laid down by the Department of Health, Government of India as well as the ICMR for screening diagnosis and treatment. Details of suspected as well as confirmed cases of this disease should be sent to the Government of India from time to time.
In Gujarat, there are more than 1,200 cases of Mucormycosis in the four big cities. There are around 500 cases in Asarwa Civil of Ahmedabad.
Mucormycosis is slowly spreading to the villages along with the cities of the state, which has led to shortage of medicines for the disease in Gujarat, which is suspected to be due to hoarding and black marketing. So, the sale of medicines for the disease is also likely to be curtailed.
WITH AGENCY INPUTS