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 Cases of mucormycosis, or "black fungus," a potentially serious
complication which causes blurred or double vision, chest pain and
breathing difficulties, have surged in India, mostly among COVID-19
patients.
At least 7,250 such cases have been found across the country as of
May 19, local media reported.
"In this battle of ours, another new challenge of black fungus has
also emerged these days," Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted on
Friday.
India has the second-highest tally of COVID-19 cases in the world
and has been reporting around 250,000 infections and 4,000 deaths
daily.
With mucormycosis cases rising, India's health ministry said it was
looking to rope in more companies to produce the antifungal drug
amphotericin B used to treat it and also increase imports.
That would lead to a nearly 250% increase in supply to around
570,000 vials in June, the ministry said on Friday.
Some Indian states like Maharashtra, home to the financial capital
Mumbai, said they were running low on amphotericin B as black fungus
cases spiked and had asked federal authorities to provide more
doses.
"One patient needs 60 to 100 injections (of amphotericin B)
depending on severity of illness. With current case load, we need
more than 150,000 injections," Maharashtra health minister Rajesh
Tope told reporters.
The western state has reported 1,500 cases of mucormycosis so far,
and 850 patients are undergoing treatment.
RURAL TESTING
Overall, India's COVID-19 infection tally stands at 26.03 million,
with a death toll of 291,331, health ministry data showed on Friday.
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The country conducted roughly two million tests on Thursday, but
experts have said infections and deaths could be between five to 10
times higher than official estimates as the virus spreads to the
vast hinterland.
India aims to double its testing capacity to 4.5 million per day by
the end of June, of which 60% would be through rapid antigen tests,
according to the government.
As part of the effort, the state-run Indian Council of Medical
Research (ICMR) this week approved home testing for COVID-19, using
rapid antigen tests.
These tests, less accurate than the RT-PCR method, are advised only
for symptomatic cases and immediate contacts of laboratory-confirmed
positive cases, according to the state-run ICMR.
"In rural areas or in field level areas, rapid antigen test is the
backbone of testing and that should be encouraged," Balram Bhargava,
head of ICMR, told reporters.
(Reporting by Manas Mishra, Rama Venkat in Bengaluru, Neha Arora in
New Delhi and Rajendra Jadhav in Mumbai; Editing by Himani Sarkar,
William Maclean)
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