A “potentially fatal” fungus is affecting some Covid patients in India. This is what the New York Times reports, which talks about mucormycosis – a fungal infection already present in the country before the pandemic – and the related infections in coronavirus infected people: “Doctors in India – it reads – are worried about a growing number of fungal infections potentially fatal affecting people who have Covid-19 or those who have recently recovered from the disease. The condition, known as mucormycosis, has a high mortality rate and was present in India before the pandemic. ” The fungus, it continues, “is caused by mold that thrives in humid environments and can attack through the respiratory tract, potentially eroding facial structures and damaging the brain.” The fungal infection, the New York Times writes, “is relatively rare, but doctors and medical experts say it appears to be infecting some Covid patients made vulnerable by weak immune systems and precarious conditions, especially those with diabetes.” , explains the NYT, “they attribute fungal infections to greater use of steroids to treat hospitalized patients. Another factor – it reads – could depend on the fact that, with hospitals overwhelmed by this second wave of pandemic, many families are self-medicate and apply oxygen therapy at home without adequate hygiene “.
