Black Fungus in Patients With Diabetes Post Covid-19 | Symptoms, Treatment & Prevention

The devastating second wave of COVID-19 didn’t leave any of us untouched. Unlike in 2020, in 2021, this pandemic has firmly gripped every nook and corner of our country, giving rise to new problems every day. Who knew a virus could give rise to a deadly fungal infection? And if not managed on time, it can claim lives of you never know how many!

Many sick patients of coronavirus have developed a rare severe fungal infection known as Mucormycosis and colloquially as “black fungus” with a mortality rate as high as 94%.

According to the data collected from a government hospital in Hyderabad, 94% of the people who developed black fungus infection after COVID-19 had diabetes. Out of which 67% of them had uncontrolled blood sugars. Alas! These numbers would have been much lower if Indians had taken diabetes more seriously.

From these statistics, it is evident that black fungus can occur among people with diabetes, not only those who have an active infection but also those who are recovering or have recovered from COVID-19 infection.

Who is at risk?

Patients who are at a higher risk of getting infected with black fungus are:

1. Patients with uncontrolled diabetes
2. Severely-ill Covid-19 patients
3. Patients on high or long-term steroid treatment for COVID-19
4. Patients with diabetes who are on steroid therapy to treat COVID-19
5. Cancer patients, patients who have recently undergone organ transplant, and those on immunosuppressants or anti-cancer drugs.
6. Patients on oxygen support

Relationship Between COVID-19, Diabetes & Black Fungus

The life-saving treatment for critically ill COVID-19 patients includes the use of steroids. Steroids are used to manage pneumonia, but at the same time, they reduce immunity and increase your blood sugar levels. Diabetes also lowers the body’s defence mechanism and causes hyperglycemia (raised blood sugar level).

The lowered immune response is exacerbated by coronavirus, which acts as a fuel to the fire. Additionally, increased blood sugar provides the perfect medium for the fungi to thrive because fungus loves sugar.

In a nutshell, uncontrolled diabetes, overuse of steroids, compromised immunity — all these 3 factors provide an excellent opportunity for black fungus to grow in patients with COVID-19 infection. That is why it is also known as an opportunistic infection. 

Symptoms of Black Fungus Post COVID-19 | Early Recognition Helps

Black fungus mainly involves the eyes, nose, sinuses and face region. The early warning signs include— acute headache, nasal pain or stuffiness, swelling and redness around the cheeks or nose, fungal patches inside the mouth and swelling of the eyelids.

Here are the telltale symptoms of this condition:

1. Sinusitis – blackish/bloody nasal discharge.
2. Pain on the cheekbone, numbness, and swelling.
3. Dental involvement – loosening of teeth, pain in teeth, jaw involvement.
4. Changes in vision – loss of vision, double vision with pain in the eye.
5. Respiratory symptoms – chest pain, further deterioration of respiratory functions, fluid build-up in lungs.

You should consult an ENT (ear, nose, throat) specialist, ophthalmologist, or treating doctor immediately if any of these symptoms appear. Do not self-medicate or wait for these symptoms to subside on their own. Apart from clinical examination, your doctor will advise an MRI scan to confirm the diagnosis of black fungus.

Black Fungus Treatment 

Treatment depends upon the severity of the disease and the clinical condition of the patient. The treatment options include antifungal medication, surgical debridement of the infected and necrotic tissue and conservative management.

Patients may or may not require multiple surgeries depending upon the severity of the disease. Some of the antifungal medications that are used are Amphotericin B injection and Posaconazole.

Prevention of Black Fungus Post COVID-19 in Patients with Diabetes

As we all know, the lethal second wave of COVID-19 in the months of April and May 2021 overwhelmed our Indian healthcare system. There was an acute shortage of life-saving drugs, ICU beds, and oxygen supplies that agonised patients’ sufferings and tied the hands of our frontline medical warriors.

So the best way to deal with black fungus is to keep your sugar levels under control. Even more so during the recovery phase as your body’s immunity is still low. Doctors should closely monitor the blood glucose levels once the patients are discharged or after they have recovered from an active COVID-19 infection.

Apart from diabetes medications, a healthy lifestyle helps patients with diabetes post-COVID recovery achieve good glycemic control, pulmonary functioning, muscle strength and immunity.

To this effect, Team Fitterfly has launched India’s first-ever Digital Therapeutics Care Program — Diabefly PCR, a Post COVID-19 Recovery Program for people with diabetes. This is how Diabefly PCR will help people with diabetes post-COVID recovery beyond their doctor’s prescription:

1. Personalised Nutrition Plans: It includes one-on-one consultations with a certified Diabetes Educator & Nutritionist. It covers detailed diet analysis and a diet plan that focuses on improving immunity, achieving better sugar control and faster recovery.
2. Physiotherapy Services & Customised Exercise Prescription: It includes in-depth fitness assessments and physical rehabilitation to regain muscle strength and facilitate pulmonary (lung) recovery.
3. Psychological Support & Stress Management: Get relieved from your baggage of stress, anxiety, hopelessness, guilt and worthlessness during the recovery phase through guided therapy sessions with a Clinical Psychologist.

The multi-disciplinary approach and remote nature of this DTx program makes it easy for people to adopt it. Moreover, it is a cost-effective solution that harnesses the power of personalised technology.

For more information, visit our website https://www.fitterfly.com/diabetes/post-covid-recovery – or call on +9122 4897 1077. Prevent Mucor. Control Blood Sugar.