JAIPUR: While hospital acquired mucormycosis cases have been reported in the state, Bikaner’s SP Medical College has used methylene blue (MB), an antiseptic and antimalarial drug, on moderate to severe Covid patients to find its efficacy in preventing black fungus and to speed up recovery of patients.
According to data, 27% of mucormycosis patients have been diagnosed when they were Covid positive.
The hospitals are taking different measures to check its spread.
While some are adding antifugals in treatment on prophylactic basis, others are monitoring sugar levels of patients as steroids used in Covid treatment spike sugar levels and increases risk of mucormycosis.
More than 74 persons have already died due to mucormycosis in the state.
In Bikaner, doctors used MB on 40 patients who were Covid positive and were suffering from moderate to severe symptoms.
“Apart from following Covid treatment protocol, nebulisation with methylene blue was done by instilling few drops of MB in the flow meter, oxygen concentrator, moisturising jar through which oxygen pass and we have found that it can inhibit growth of almost all types of contamination, including mucormycosis present in oxygen,” said Dr Gunjan Soni, senior professor and head of the department of respiratory medicine, SP Medical College, Bikaner.
A lot of debate is going on unhygienic humidifiers as one of the possible causes of mucormycosis.
To prevent it, doctors of SP Medical College used MB in flow meters, mosturising jars so that the oxygen passes through it before reaching the patient.
Dr Gunjan and his team of doctors performed conducted study on 40 RT-PCR confirmed moderate to severe Covid patients admitted to RDH Hospital of SP Medical College.
“Patients were given 4ml of 0.1% MB in nebulized form12 hourly along with few drops of MB in flow meter, oxygen concentrator and moisturising jar.
It was observed that 33 out of 40 (82.50%) cases studied showed recovery with improved SPO2 levels with a mean of 93.5, reduced respiratory rate, pulse rate, temperature and over all well-being,” said Dr Soni.
Dr Soni said the results of the study are quite encouraging and it will be published in journal before making them public.