With the ‘black fungus’ identified in Covid patients, followed by a ‘white’ variant and now ‘yellow’, AIIMS Director Dr Randeep Guleria on Monday advised that mucormycosis should be identified by its name, rather than by its colour.
He said that it is better not to use the term ‘black fungus’ while talking of mucormycosis, as it leads to a lot of avoidable confusion.
“Black fungus is another family; this term got associated with mucormycosis due to the presence of black dots among the culture of white fungal colonies. In general, there are various types of fungal infections such as candida, aspergillosis, cryptococcus, histoplasmosis and coccidioidomycosis. Mucormycosis, candida and aspergillosis are the ones observed more in those with low immunity,” he told the media here.
“Fungal infection observed in Covid-19 patients is mostly mucormycosis. While the number of cases are increasing, it is not contagious or infectious like Covid,” he said.
Guleria also clarified that there is “no definite link between oxygen therapy and catching the infection as 90 to 95 per cent of mucormycosis patients are either diabetic and/or taking steroids”.
“This infection is seen very rarely in those who are neither diabetic nor taking steroids,” he said.
He said that some of the common symptoms of mucormycosis are one-sided facial swelling, headaches, nasal or sinus congestion, black lesions on nasal bridge or upper inside of mouth that quickly become more severe, and fever.
Meanwhile, Guleria, said that Mucormycosis, a fungal infection also known as ‘black fungus, can infect the lungs, eyes and the gastrointestinal tract, and can even spread to the brain. Guleria said that three type of fungal infections are found in patients with high diabetes and steroid doses — Candida, Aspergillosis and Mucormycosis.
Mucormycosis can be categorised depending on which organ is attacked by it, he said, adding that signs and symptoms of the infection also vary depending on the affected body part.
“The Rhino orbital cerebral Mucormycosis infects the nose, orbit of eye/eye socket, oral cavity and can even spread to the brain. The symptoms include headache, nasal congestion, nasal discharge (green colour), pain in sinus, bleeding nose, swelling on face, lack of sensation on face and skin discolouration.
“The Pulmonary Mucormycosis affects the lungs. It causes fever, chest pain, cough and coughing of blood. The fungus can also infect the gastrointestinal tract,” Guleria said
“The Candida fungal infection can manifest with symptoms such as white patches in the mouth, tongue and oral cavities; it can infect the private parts and can also be found in the blood (in which case it can become serious).