HYDERABAD: Three mosques in the city are now equipped with dental and ophthalmic infrastructure to screen 5,000 Covid-19 recovered patients for mucormycosis, the fungal infection that is creating havoc in parts of India.
Experts in ophthalmology, dental sciences and ENT, besides general physicians will take up screening of post-Covid-19 patients to rule out mucormycosis as the second wave in Telangana is now on a steady decline.
Most mucormycosis cases are reported between second and four weeks post recovery from the virus.
On Thursday, mucormycosis screening drive began at Masjid Ishaq at NS Kunta, Masjid Muhammed Mustafa at Rajendranagar and Masjid Omar-e-Shifa at Shaheenagar in the city.
Incidentally, this is the first contact community-level screening for mucormycosis.
The mosque centres would not only screen Covid-19 recovered patients but also spread awareness about prevention and control of the major fungal threat to health.
There is also online counselling and diagnosis facility for those who cannot visit the centres.
“With dental chairs and full-fledged ophthalmology units at the mosque centres, arrangement have been made for screening by a team of general practitioners, dental surgeons and ophthalmologists.
Any patient found to be having early signs of the infection will be referred to a specialist or higher centre for further management and the patient will be tracked and monitored till he or she is discharged from hospital,” Helping Hand Foundation managing trustee Mujtaba Hasan Askari.
According to Dr Arshia Akbar, senior ophthalmologist and oculoplastic surgeon, who is associated with the mosque centres, early detection of mucormycosis was significant as it results in better outcome.
“The typical pathology may involve rhino (nose) sinuses, maxillary sinus (oral cavity), orbit (eye) and then brain finally.
However, this is not necessarily the order,” she added.
About 5,000 post-Covid-19 patients have registered with Helping Hand Foundation, the NGO running these centres.
All the post-Covid-19 cases between second and fourth week of the disease were being contacted and screened for mucormycosis.
Triaging for mucormycosis through a structured template or risk assessment form would be done at the centres.
In the last three years, many mosques in Hyderabad have opened their doors to services other than religious.
Beginning with ‘Visit my mosque’ programme in 2018, mosques have turned into impromptu clinics, diagnostic centres, Covid-19 isolation centres, mid-day meal centres and shelters for flood-hit people of the city.
Some of them have been hosting libraries and coaching centres for better career prospects of the youth.
People cutting across religious divide have benefited.