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Even as the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic rages on, the country is in the grip of a new fear - the black fungus infection. The cases of black fungus are on the rise among COVID-19 patients in different parts of the country. But, what is black fungus?

A rare fungal infection

Black fungus' or mucormycosis is a rare, aggressive, invasive fungal infection, which can be fatal if not detected early. As it shows up as black patches of skin or black lesions, it is called black fungus. Mucomycosis is caused by exposure to a group of fungi or moulds known as mucormycetes, which are commonly found in soil, compost, animal dung, and decaying organic matter. Most fungi are usually harmless, but when our immune system is compromised or weakened by disease or drugs, they start invading our tissues.

Black fungus and COVID-19 Mucomycosis affects the nose, eye, and sometimes the brain. It spreads through the nose and affects other parts of the body. According to health experts, it is mostly found in people who are recovering or have recovered from COVID-19 and those with poor immunity and uncontrolled diabetes.

Also patients on ventilator support and prolonged oxygen therapy are at high risk of contracting the fungal infection. Being detected in COVID-19 patients, mucormycosis is attributed to an excessive use of steroids in their treatment. Steroids are life-saving drugs used to treat critically ill COMID-19 patients, as they reduce inflammation in the lungs caused by the disease. But on the flip side, they also bring down immunity, thereby reducing the body's ability to fight environmental pathogens. This is said to be the reason for the recent spurt in black fungus cases. If diagnosed early, the fungal infection can be cured completely, say doctors.

What are the symptoms?

According to health experts, the symptoms of mucomycosis include headache, fever, pain under the eye, redness of the eye, nasal or sinus congestion or black discharge, facial numbness, loosening of teeth, black areas inside the mouth or nose, double vision and partial loss of vision. Mucomycosis is not contagious. When diagnosed early, it can be treated with an anti fungal drug. Sometimes, surgery may be required as a life-saving measure to remove the affected part

What can be done?

The All India Institute of Medical Sciences has issued a set of guidelines in case of detecting black fungus in a patient Immediately consult an ENT, ophthalmologist or the doctor who has been treating the patient, monitor and control blood sugar in diabetics, regular treatment and follow-up, and avoid self medication.

Meanwhile, cases of white and yellow fungus are also being reported from parts of the country.

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Ringworm, also known as dermatophytosis, dermatophyte infection, or tinea, is a fungal infection of the skin.

“Ringworm” is a misnomer, since a fungus, not a worm, causes the infection. The lesion caused by this infection resembles a worm in the shape of a ring — hence the name.

Ringworm is usually specifically used to describe tinea corporis (ringworm of the body), although it can sometimes be used to describe tinea infection in other locations, such as tinea cruris (ringworm of the groin).

Ringworm infection can affect both humans and animals. The infection initially appears as red patches on affected areas of the skin and later may spread to other parts of the body. It may affect the scalp, feet, nails, groin, beard, or other areas.

A fungal infection rarely spreads below the surface of the skin to cause serious illness. But people with weak immune systems, such as those with HIV/AIDS, may find it difficult to get rid of the infection.

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Sunburn is caused by too much exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light. UV light may be from sunlight or artificial sources, such as sunlamps and tanning beds.

Intense, repeated sun exposure that results in sunburn increases your risk of other skin damage and certain diseases. These include premature aging of skin (photoaging), precancerous skin lesions and skin cancer.

Despite health warnings about sun damage, many of us still subject our skin to the sun's burning rays.

More than one-third of adults and nearly 70% of children admit they've gotten sunburned within the past year, according to the CDC.

When you get a sunburn, your skin turns red and hurts. If the burn is severe, you can develop swelling and sunburn blisters. You may even feel like you have the flu -- feverish, with chills, nausea, headache, and weakness.

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Melanin is a broad term for a group of natural pigments found in most organisms. Melanin is produced through a multistage chemical process known as melanogenesis, where the oxidation of the amino acid tyrosine is followed by polymerization. The melanin pigments are produced in a specialized group of cells known as melanocytes.

Although melanin is usually discussed as a single pigment, there are two types of melanin that contribute to pigmentation in the hair, skin, and eyes of humans and animals:

• Eumelanin. This pigment is associated with dark tones, such as brown and black.
• Pheomelanin. This pigment is associated with alternate hues, such as red and yellow.

A third type of melanin, called neuromelanin, exists within the human brain and gives pigment to the structures in this area.

Unlike eumelanin and pheomelanin, neuromelanin doesn’t provide pigmentation for human features. Instead, this type of melanin has primarily been studiedTrusted Source for its connection to Parkinson’s disease.

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Once in a while, some part of your body hurts. It may be your stomach or your head. You feel pain.

It is never fun to feel pain. Sometimes you might even cry. Pain is a warning. Pain usually happens because you are sick or you have hurt part of your body. When you feel pain, nerves send a signal to your brain. Your brain understands the signal. If you did not feel pain, you would not know when something was wrong inside.

When you feel pain, tell your parents or your teacher where it hurts. They know how to make the pain feel better. For example, if you have a headache, your mother might suggest sleep, an ice pack, or medicine to help take the pain away. Other times you may need to see your doctor. Your doctor might have to do medical tests to find out what is wrong and how to make you feel better.

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Sometimes when you bump a part of your body, such as your elbow, the bump pushes a muscle against a bone. Tiny veins and arteries in the muscle break. Some blood leaks out, and soon, you have a bruise.

A bruise is like an inside out cut. A bruise does not bleed on the outside because the skin is not broken. Instead, the blood moves below the top layer of your skin. The blood shows through your skin as dark blue or black.

As the bruise heals, it may change colours. Each colour is lighter than the last. This means that the blood is moving back into your body. The muscle is getting well.

Burns are another way you can hurt yourself. When your skin burns, the burned spot puffs up. A blister forms. A blister is like a puffy little pocket in the layers of your skin. The top layer of skin pulls away from the layers underneath it, and the space fills with liquid. The top layer keeps germs from getting into the blister.

Again, your cells start to heal your burned skin. Slowly the liquid moves back into your body, and your blister heals.

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With COVID-19 cases surging in several parts of the country, there have been reports of some States facing acute shortage of medical oxygen. But what is medical oxygen?

Used in healthcare

You may think there is enough oxygen in the air around us. But the natural air around us has only 21% of oxygen and the rest is a mixture of other gases such as nitrogen (78%), argon and carbon dioxide. Medical oxygen is pure oxygen used for treatment of patients in hospitals. The oxygen from the ambient air is separated using a special technique, inspected and packaged into cylinders for use in hospitals. There are different grades of oxygen such as industrial oxygen, aviator breathing oxygen, and medical oxygen.

Life-saving gas

The oxygen we breathe gets into our bloodstream, providing our body with energy. Every cell in our body needs oxygen for proper functioning if there is not enough oxygen in our bloodstream to supply our tissues and cells, then we need supplemental oxygen to keep our organs healthy. Medical oxygen is a critical component in the treatment of patients with COVID-19. Illnesses such as this cause the oxygen level in the body to dip, which affects the functioning of the cells, if left untreated. If the cells don’t function properly, it affects the organs and the functioning of all systems in the body, causing even death in extreme cases. So giving medical oxygen becomes essential as it restores the oxygen level in the cells and tissues, saving life. COVID-19 is said to primarily affect the lungs in patients. As it causes oxygen deficiency in the body because of its impact on the lungs, patients are put on oxygen therapy to maintain the function of the vital organs. Again, too much oxygen can be dangerous. That’s why doctors and caregivers keep a close eye on patients to ensure that they get only the required amount of medical oxygen, and not more. Did you know a pulse oximeter, a small, clip-like device into which a finger is inserted, tracks blood oxygen levels, and can diagnose oxygen deficiency?

States with a high demand

Amid the spike in cases, the Centre has decided to import 50,000 metric tonnes of medical oxygen plants at 100 new hospitals in far-flung areas. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called for synergy between various ministers and State governments to ensure smooth supply of medical oxygen and for ramping up its production.

According to the Union health ministry, the Centre-appointed Empowered Group (EG2), constituted last year to ensure availability of essential medical equipment during the pandemic, is monitoring the situation of demand and supply of medical oxygen. The country has the capacity to produce over 7,000 metric tonnes of oxygen per day. It is said that the maximum consumption of medical oxygen is by States with high COVID-19 cases such as Maharashtra, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Delhi, Chhattisgarh, Punjab and Rajasthan.

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Positive impact

CO2 Emission

Reports that emerged late 2020 showed that the pandemic did have an impact on the CO2 emission last year. Widespread shutdowns, drastic reduction in industrial activities and commuter traffic led to significant drop in the level of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. In November 2020, the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) estimated that the annual global CO2 emission reduced 4.2-7.5 % in 2020. April 2020 saw a drop of about 17% in global monthly CO2 emissions from fossil fuels, but the annual CO2 emissions for the globe were only 7% lower than they were in 2019. However, the WMO called it a blip on the planet’s uncontrolled emission scenario. Scientists pointed out the Earth’s atmosphere has a heavy concentration of greenhouse gases, including CO2. The temporary reduction in emission due to the pandemic would not curb global warming and resultant climate change. However, we can consider this a positive impact because the pandemic has shown us that it is not impossible to reduce CO2 emission and it has offered us many lessons on Nature conservation – lessons, albeit learnt the hard way.

Pollution

Besides CO2, the concentration of other pollutants such as carbon monoxide, NO2 and PM2.5 also saw a sharp reduction in major cities of the world last year.

Water quality

Water quality too improved in 2020. For the first time in decades, the water of river Ganga was found to be fit enough for drinking as per a study conducted by the Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee. Scientists attributed it to the lockdown induced by the pandemic. There was 500% reduction in sewage and industrial effluents, and human activities in the vicinity of the river were almost nil. Studies conducted in the U.S., European countries, and China had also found an improvement in water quality in the rivers and lakes of their respective countries.

Less noise

With industries and traffic falling silent for a major part of the pandemic, there has been a reduction in noise pollution. A short-term study conducted in Pune last year showed that commercial areas witnessed the maximum drop from 74.56 decibels (dB) in March 2020 to 66.55 in April 2020, and residential areas saw it drop from 49.75 dB to 47.48 dB and silent zones from 49.53 dB to 47.11 dBIn Kanpur, the average noise levels before and during the lockdown were found to be in the range of 44.85 dB to 79.57 dB and 38.55 dB to 57.79 dB respectively. Similar reduction in noise was also found in other parts of the world. However, it is to be remembered that these improvements won’t last if the world goes back to its pre-pandemic ways.

Wildlife

After several early cases of COVID-19 were linked to a wet market in China, wildlife trade became central to discussions on public health. Countries such as China and Vietnam acted quickly to introduce large-scale prohibitions of wildlife trade. China upgraded the legal protections for pangolins to the same status as the nation’s beloved panda, prohibiting nearly all domestic trade and use. This is among the biggest positive outcomes of the pandemic.

Meanwhile, the lockdown brought wildlife to the cities. Animals in urban areas were exploring empty streets and waterways. Those in the nature reserves and parks caught some quiet time without the disturbances from tourists. Even sea turtles were spotted returning to areas they once avoided to lay their eggs, all due to the lack of human interference. Scientists reported that plants were growing better because there was cleaner air and water.

Negative impact

Biomedical waste

The management of biomedical waste such as personal protective equipment (PPE), gloves, face masks, head cover, among other gear and medical equipment used by both healthcare providers and patients is the biggest challenge that governments around the world are facing. According to the data shared by Central Pollution Control Board, India generated over 18,000 tonnes of COVID-19-related biomedical waste between June and September last year. India’s Covid vaccination drive is also seeing thousands of syringes being disposed of every day. The Indian government has defined standards, protocols and guidelines for different categories of biomedical waste but unsafe disposal of such waste in open dustbins is not uncommon in the country.

Plastic is back

Just a couple of years ago, the world woke up to the problem of plastic and was taking measures to find an alternative to single-use plastic. Many countries and States of India had restrictions on the usage of single-use plastic. But those commitments were thrown out the window when the pandemic hit us. Moreover, plastic products play a significant role in protecting people during the COVID-19 pandemic. Materials such as PPE suits, face shields, masks and gloves are plastic, and they are meant to be disposed of after single use. Besides, the fear of surface contamination has made disposal cups, cutleries, and plastic bags make a swift comeback. The amount of plastic waste generated worldwide since the COVID-19 outbreaks estimated at 1.6 million tonnes / day. This could cause a surge in plastics washing up on the ocean coastlines and littering the seabed.

Deforestation and poaching

Many people have lost their jobs and livelihood due to COVID-19 and this has contributed to illegal tree felling, illegal mining and wildlife poaching. There are reports of increased deforestation in Asia, Africa, and Latin America.

Areas that are economically dependent on tourism face reduced resources as tourism has come to a halt. This is leaving animals in the reserves with much less protection. There has been an increase in wildlife poaching – either to provide food for hungry families or for illegal sales.

 

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