Ramification of Covid-19 pandemic : Occurrence and impact of fungal Infections in a tertiary care hospital

• DOI: 10.1099/acmi.0.000640.v1
• Publication Date: 2023-06-08T17:29:27Z
• Authors: Ravinder Kaur; Deepti Rawat; Ashish William; Pradeep Kumar Singh; Neelam S.S Kandir; Akanksha Sharma
• Keywords: Diagnosis and Management of Fungal Infections; Immunology; Infectious disease (medical specialty); FOS: Health sciences; Applied Microbiology and Biotechnology; Biochemistry; Food science; Global Burden of Antimicrobial Resistance; Health Sciences; Rhizopus arrhizus; Pathology; Mucormycosis; Aspergillosis; Tuberculosis; Disease; Internal medicine; Biology; Immunology and Microbiology; Pharmacology; Pandemic; FOS: Clinical medicine; Gastroenterology; Sputum; Life Sciences; Scientific and Medical Aspects of Ozone Therapy; Lipase; Medical microbiology; 3. Good health; Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19); Infectious Diseases; Enzyme; Galactomannan; Fermentation; Medicine; Antifungal Resistance; Rhizopus

Coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) pandemic has been prevailing for more than a year associated with increased number of opportunistic invasive fungal infections in patients who have been critically ill or immunocompromised. In this retrospective study, details of various clinical specimens received from suspected patients of fungal infections were processed according to standard protocol were studied. The fungal infections were present in 64% (51/79) COVID-19 positive patients and 43% (163/381) COVID-19 negative patients) during the year 2021 during the second wave of COVID-19. Among Covid infected patients, the fungal infection mostly observed was Candidiasis (63%) followed by Aspergillosis (15% ) and Mucormycosis (6%). The maximum samples positive in Covid patients were urine samples followed by Serum (for Aspergillus Galactomannan). Among the urine and respiratory samples (BAL, Tracheal aspirate, Sputum) in Covid-19 positive patients, maximum positivity of Candida species was seen. Mucormycosis in Covid-19 positive patients was isolated in Nasal samples followed by tissue sample with Rhizopus arrhizus and Rhizopus homothallicus. There has been an increase in fungal co-infections during the COVID-19 pandemic which is a matter of great concern. Early diagnosis is essential for effective management of these patients.