'Black fungus' patient identified at DMCH

A patient at the Dhaka Medical College Hospital (DMCH) has been diagnosed with “black fungus” infection. The 45-year-old patient was admitted to DMCH a week earlier with the symptoms of black fungus infection after recovering from covid-19.

Farhad Uddin Hasan Chowdhury, chief of medicine and contagious disease related department, confirmed the matter to Prothom Alo on Monday.

Farhad Uddin said that this patient from Khulna tested positive for coronavirus a month earlier. After recovering from the infection he exhibited some symptoms including headache, problem in the right eye, sinusitis, inflammation on one side of his face and breathing problem. He was admitted to Dhaka Medical College with these symptoms. After examining his symptoms the physicians suspected it to be a fungal infection.

A medical board was formed for his treatment in collaboration with medicine and ear-nose-throat specialists. Later, the fungus was surgically removed from the patient’s body.

Histopathology, microscopy and culture examination of the sample were conducted and the presence of black fungus was detected in all three.

"As we were almost sure about black fungus infection, we started to give the patient the necessary treatment even before getting the reports. That person needs to undergo treatment for four to six weeks. His physical condition is much better than the time he was brought to DMCH," Farhad Uddin said.