Some cases of white fungus were recently found in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh and it has created a panic amongst the citizens. Amongst the Covid outbreak nowadays, Black fungus named disease has generated a new panic in the nation. Seeing the increase in the number of patients, the central government has requested different states to announce that Black Fungus is an epidemic.
Many states have agreed to do that. But between all this, a new type of infection is emerging. This infection is given the name WHITE FUNGUS.
WHITE FUNGUS CASES IN INDIA
From the capital of Bihar, Patna, four cases of white fungus were found on 19th and 20th May. On the same day, a 70-year old person was found infected with white fungus. Doctors are saying that this is the first case of this fungus.
The person was Covid-19 positive last month and was brought to Delhi for treatment. After getting cured of the virus, he went back to Uttar Pradesh on 23rd April. Some days later, he started having problems seeing correctly. His eyes became wet and he was not able to see clearly. Being concerned about this, he went to a hospital in Banaras. Dr. Kshitij Aditya treated him and told him about this fungus.
Dr. Kshitij told IndiaTV that the patient was kept on steroids after being tested Covid positive. Few days after being discharged, he started having problems with his eyes. He was not able to see properly and his eyes were watery. When Dr. K. A. got the case, he thought that it was some infection that used blood as a medium to travel and then infected the eye of the patient. After examining the patient carefully, he got to the conclusion that this infection is nothing else but a fungus.
Dr. S N Singh, head of the microbiology department in Patna Medical College, Bihar said that cases of white fungus can increase in Bihar. According to Dr. Singh, people with weak immunity, diabetes, AIDS, and people having kidney transplants are more exposed to this infection. Showing carelessness while taking oxygen can also give you white fungus. Dr. S N Singh said that most people usually fill tap water in the humidifier while taking oxygen. Using this water can provide both oxygen and WHITE FUNGUS to the patient.
Dr. Singh told downtoearth websites that even a doctor is infected with white fungus. After seeing Covid-like symptoms, he did a test to check whether he is positive or negative. The reports said Covid-negative, but he was still feeling infection in his chest. After doing a few more tests, it came out that he was infected with this fungus.
WHAT IS WHITE FUNGUS ACTUALLY?
This fungus can affect any part of the body. The most common areas are skin, eyes, lungs, nails, private parts, and kidneys. Dr. Manoj Kumar, the head doctor in microbiology, said that fungus is of different colours and is present in the environment. Whenever our body gets weak, the chance of getting infected by this fungus increases.
What we call white fungus is actually Aspergillus and Candida. It is a part of the fungus family that can grow on different parts of our body. It is mostly found in the eyes, lungs, and private parts. It is not a new infection. People earlier were also infected by white fungus. It’s due to using of steroids in Covid-19’s treatment that more people are now getting infected. It has nothing to do with the Covid-19 virus.
Dr. Rajkumar, director at Patel Chest Institute New Delhi, said that black fungus or white fungus were always present in nature. We inhale this fungus while breathing, but our immunity doesn’t let it affect our body. In Covid-19 patients, due to weak immunity, this infection is able to affect different body parts. This infection is not new. It is just that people are already facing the pandemic, and now seeing the increase in the number of people getting infected by white fungus is scaring them more. Black fungus is deadlier, but there is no news of patients dying due to white fungus.
Doctors are advising Covid recovered patients to visit hospitals if they feel anything wrong with any part of their body. The white fungus can be identified by testing the patient’s mucus. Doctors are treating patients infected by white fungus with normal anti-fungal medicines and injections.
Till now, every patient’s condition who is infected by white fungus in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh is normal and under control. There is no news of death due to white fungus. Dr. Manoj Kumar said that a person’s chance of getting well increases if they consult a doctor as soon as they feel something wrong, He also stated that it is not necessary that every fungal infection is deadly in nature.
RELATION OF WHITE FUNGUS WITH CORONA PATIENTS
As soon as a person starts to lose his/her immunity, this white fungus takes over. As we all know that if a person gets infected with COVID 19, the person’s immunity levels start dropping. Other than that, the steroids and antibiotics used in the treatment of COVID 19 also lead to a drop in immunity. So, due to low immunity levels, this fungus tries to take over and spread a severe infection throughout your body parts. It has also been seen that COVID patients who were on oxygen support have high chances to get infected by the white fungus. People who are suffering from diabetes, cancer, chemotherapy, HIV/AIDS, and asthma also have high chances of getting infected by this fungus.
HOW TO KNOW IF WE HAVE COVID OR WHITE FUNGUS?
It is very difficult to diagnose from a CT scan that a patient has COVID or White fungus because the report of the lungs that comes after the CT scan in both cases looks pretty much similar. So, to confirm, the RTPCR of the patient is conducted and the saliva sample for this Fungus is tested.
WHAT IS THE TREATMENT OF WHITE FUNGUS?
The good news is that we are having many antifungal medicines like Amphotericin B, Micafungin, Caspofungin, Fluconazole, Voriconazole, Clotrimazole for the treatment of white fungus. It is highly recommended to consult a doctor for treatment and prescription.
HOW TO PREVENT WHITE FUNGUS?
However, black fungus and white fungus cases are continuously coming up but we don’t need to panic. The main thing that we have to protect ourselves from is CORONA VIRUS.
Following all COVID-appropriate behaviours, getting vaccinated, and improving immunity are important for everyone. It is a fact that not all CORONA patients are getting infected fro white or black fungus. Only 0.2% of the patients are getting its symptoms.
Here are some steps which you can follow to prevent white fungus!
- Maintain your oral health. Brush properly and you can also use mouth wash.
- If you are taking steroid medicines through steam then after taking it, wash your teeth and mouth properly.
- Keep your surroundings clean and try to sterilize everything you use.
- Maintain proper hygiene.
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