One more black fungus case in Kolkata; West Bengal count now at 24 – Times of India

Kolkata News

KOLKATA: One more mucormycosis or black fungus case was detected in Kolkata on Sunday from the state-run SSKM Hospital, taking the total count of black fungus cases to 24 across the state. Four other suspected cases that are yet to undergo confirmatory tests were also reported to Swasthya Bhawan on Sunday, two of them being from SSKM Hospital. The mucormycosis death count stands at three in Bengal.
Even as four cases of black fungus were reported in the state for the first time on May 14, all four patients were from neighbouring Bihar and Jharkhand who had come seeking medical attention in Bengal. All the four Covid-recovered patients had undergone treatment in their respective states.
The first confirmed case for a patient from the state surfaced on May 22, when a 62-year-old was detected with the fungal infection post Covid-19 from a private hospital. Two more cases were reported from Bankura Sammilani Medical College (BSMCH) on the same day. After this, 21 more cases have been confirmed within a span of eight days after this — five were confirmed on Saturday alone, including three from the Command Hospital, according to health department sources.
“We got the report of one new case from SSKM Hospital on Sunday taking the cumulative count of the mucormycosis affected to 24 in the state. We also got the report of four more new suspected cases from three hospitals taking the number of suspected cases to 33. No further death and hence the toll remains three,” said Ajay Chakraborty, director, health services.
Of the four suspected cases, two patients are from Kolkata while one each are from Birbhum and Uttar Dinajpur.
Sources in the health department said among the 24 cases, a few do not have any connection with Covid but all are highly diabetic.
Due to the rising cases of mucormycosis in some other states, Bengal government had formed an expert committee even before the first case was detected in the state. The health department had also identified SSKM Hospital to be the nodal centre for treating black fungus cases while BSMC and North Bengal Medical College were made the regional facilities.
“All teaching medical colleges and district hospitals have been asked to set up their own teams to treat patients with mucormycosis, because the treatment involves a multidisciplinary team and hence they can refer patients to the apex and regional hubs if they do not have such teams,” said a health department official.

Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/kolkata/one-more-black-fungus-case-in-city-bengal-count-now-at-24/articleshow/83096294.cms