Deadly fungal infection assumes a new color.

On Tuesday the June 15 of 2021, India reported its first case of the green fungus in a 34-year-old covid-19 recovered patient from Indore, Madhya Pradesh. He was flown by air ambulance to Mumbai for treatment.

Along with the struggles of ever-mutating coronavirus and the insurmountable challenge of vaccinating the whole country, India has also been riddled with deadly fungal cases in both covid positive and covid recovered patients.

The devastation via fungal infections began at the peak of the second wave of covid-19 with black fungus (mucormycosis).  India reported its first black fungal infection in a hospital in Gujrat, and it has since spread like forest fires. Post that, the nation has seen instances of white fungus (Candida), yellow fungus (mucor septic) and now green fungus (Aspergillosis) as well.

While many states across the country have declared black fungus an endemic, this is the first case of green fungus in India, According to Dr Ravi Dosi, who is the head of the Department of Chest Diseases at Sri Aurobindo Institute of Medical Sciences (SAIMS), the patient was suspected of having contracted the mucormycosis or black fungus and was tested for that. But to everyone’s surprise, he was instead found to have green fungus (Aspergillosis) infection in his sinuses, lungs and blood following the test reports.

What is Green Fungus?

Green fungus, medically known as ‘Aspergillosis’, induces high fever and nose bleeds. Aspergillosis is caused by Aspergillus, a common mould that lives everywhere in our ordinary surroundings, both indoors and outdoors. Aspergillus is not known to cause illness in immunocompetent adults; however, immunocompromised people (with low or weakened immune systems) or who have lung diseases are at a higher risk of contracting health issues due to Aspergillus.

The main symptoms of Green Fungus include nose bleeding, high fever, weakness or fatigue and weight loss. According to Dr Dosi, all the primary symptoms were found in the 34-year-old patient who was airlifted to Mumbai for treatment of green fungus. The patient recovered from his primary disease of covid-19, but he started having nose bleeds and a high fever. The doctor also mentioned that he had become frail due to weight loss.

Spread and prevention.

A person gets infected after inhaling aspergillus spores. For people with healthy immune systems, inhaling Aspergillus spores is not harmful. However, for people whose immune systems are blunted for any reason, breathing in Aspergillus spores can lead to an infection in the lungs or sinuses, which can even spread to other parts of the body. In addition, if invasive aspergillosis remains untreated, it can end up causing infectious pneumonia.

The best way to prevent such rare fungal infections is by maintaining good hygiene, oral and physical cleanliness. One should avoid visiting areas with a lot of dust and stored contaminated water without wearing an N95 respirator. Keep washing your face and hands well with soap and water, especially if they have come in close contact with soil or dust.

Nothing can yet be predicted about this green fungal infection; it can spread to the masses or be a one-off incident. Either way, there is a need for more research on the nature of green fungus infection.