Maharashtra’s monthly requirement for the extremely costly and rare antifungal medicine, liposomal amphotericin B injection, the drug used for treating black fungus, has grown 100 times from 3,000 during pre-pandemic days to three lakh injections as of now.
According to a report by The Indian Express, the procurement of the drug has been a massive challenge for many like who require between 90 and 120 vials that cost anything between Rs 6,000 and Rs 8,000 each. Pharmaceutical companies also seem to be incapable of servicing this increased demand.
The Pune district administration has directed health officials to screen covid-19 survivors in rural areas to identify any suspected cases of mucormycosis, or black fungus. As per an order issued on Sunday by district Collector Rajesh Deshmukh, the health departments in rural areas have been instructed to obtain lists of COVID-19 patients who recovered from the infection after April 15 and conduct the first round of the screening of suspected mucormycosis patients between May 24 and May 27.
The Pune district in Maharashtra has so far reported more than 300 cases of mucormycosis.
“If a suspected case of mucormycosis is found during screening, it is expected that he or she should be checked by experts, and if diagnosed with the ailment, the patient should be given necessary medication and referred for further medical/surgical treatment,” said the order.
It stated that the tehsils where the number of COVID-19 recovered patients is high, additional doctors should be made available to carry out the screening.
Maharashtra’s Health Minister, Rajesh Tope had on Thursday said that mucormycosis, which has claimed 90 lives in the state so far, was a matter of prime concern for the state at present. The state government needs more supply of the medicine used in its treatment, he had said.
States like Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Haryana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Telangana – all badly affected – have been allotted 75 per cent of the vials by the Centre. The remaining 25 per cent will be allocated after verification of the number of patients. Gujarat has the highest number of infections with 2,281 cases and has been allocated 5,800 vials, while Maharashtra, with 2,000 cases, has received 5,090 vials.
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