A Rare Case Of Black Fungus Detected In The Patient's Brain In Bengaluru

Cases of Black Fungus also known as Mucormycosis, are emerging all across the country, a case of Black Fungus emerged in Gauribidanur where a 48-year-old woman who recovered from Covid and developed stroke-like symptoms. She was rushed to a Bengaluru hospital, where doctors discovered that black fungus had directly impacted her brain.

The doctors confirmed that the fungus was not identified in her eyes, nose, or sino orbital nerve, which is where the fungus generally enters the body. It was only found in her brain. A biopsy and tissue culture tests were used to validate this.

Doctors claimed they haven't heard of a case like this before, at least not in Karnataka.

The woman was hospitalised to a Covid Care Centre in her town after testing positive on May 4. On May 11, she was released from the hospital. She was brought to a government hospital in Chikkaballapura after showing evidence of suffering from a stroke. On May 15, she was transferred to Jain Hospital's non-Covid ICU after testing negative for the SARS-CoV2 virus.

There were no signs or symptoms of mucormycosis in the woman. Dr Sharan Srinivasan, a stereotactic and functional neurosurgeon who did the fungus removal treatment, claimed she was not diabetic as well as not on steroids or any immunosuppressant medicines. He claimed the woman was on mild oxygen assistance through her Covid medication, but she started having problems in speaking just a day before she was discharged from the CCC. She had weakness in her right side of the body after returning home.

She had a CT scan at Jain hospital, which indicated a stroke, but her condition did not improve with medicine. She had no temperature or swelling in her face. Despite the fact that stroke is common after Covid, her case did not fit the pattern. A magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) examination two days later revealed a tumor-like mass deep in the brain.

Dr Anil Ramakrishna, neurologist at Bhagawan Mahaveer Jain hospital said that Her situation appeared to be that of a stroke, but the MRI revealed that the pattern of involvement was really unusual. He added that black fungus was not even suspected at first. She developed an infection in the thalamus, which is a deep portion of the brain. They may have not done a biopsy if it hadn't been the time of the pandemic.

After several tests, after a biopsy, doctors were able to rule out tuberculosis, putting them on the right track. The fungal presence was clearly visible in the tissue culture investigation, showing that it was a case of mucormycosis.

Dr. Srinivasan used MRI-guided stereotactic neurosurgery to detect the infected matter in the thalamus, which is a technique for locating targets of surgical interest within the brain. To remove the infectious substance, they had to go 9.5cm inside the brain.

The patient is now taking the antifungal medicine Liposomal Amphotericin-B, but doctors are having trouble finding it. She is recovering after a lengthy treatment to remove fungus material from her brain at Bhagawan Mahaveer Jain Hospital in Vasanth Nagar.