Black Fungus Treatment Facility Launched At Bengaluru Hospital

Black Fungus Treatment Facility: The Health and Medical Educational Minister K Sudhakar announced that a facility to treat the post COVID -19 complication Black Fungus has been launched at the Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospital in Bengaluru.

Sudhakar also added that the facility for the treatment shall be launched in other districts of the state as well.

A proposal to provide the treatment free of cost for Black fungus shall be discussed with the Chief Minister, added Sudhakar. He further said that the Black Fungus is more likely to happen in patients who have low immunity, diabetes and steroid overdose.

Sudhakar also added that the disease starts from the nose and damages eyesight, which leads to the loss of vision in some cases. If the disease is not treated properly, it can cause death.

Talking to reporters, the Minister said that the best treatment is being launched at the Boring Hospital on Monday, on consultation with ophthalmologists in Maharashtra, where the patients of the disease are already being treated.

"The treatment shall also be available across other districts and medical colleges," he said.

He also said that the treatment for Black Fungus should be given for seven consecutive weeks which costs about ₹2 to 3 lakhs, hence it will be discussed with the Chief Minister of the state to provide the treatment free of charge. The central government would supply the requested amphotericin drug for a dose of ₹20,000, which will be used for the treatment.

The state government has also constituted a panel of four specialists including ophthalmologists to advise on the treatment of the disease.

The Minister urged the doctors to not give people immunosuppressive drugs and stated that no one should take a steroid-free drug without consulting a doctor.

According to health officials, 4 cases of Black Fungus were reported from Vijayapura and Bagalkote. Among the three cases that were reported in Bagalkote, two people are receiving treatment in private hospitals in Hyderabad and Bengaluru, and one person is being treated at the Bilagi healthcare centre at Bagalkote.

In Vijayapura, doctors at the Bijapur Lingayat District Educational Association (B.L.D.E.A.) medical college and hospital confirmed that a case of the disease was reported in the district and the patient is stable and is responding to the treatment.