What is Black Fungus Disease?
Black fungus disease is a type of fungal infection.
Black fungus disease is a type of fungal infection. Caution should be exercised if this rare infection occurs, as it can take a rather serious course. This fungal infection, which is also referred to as zygomycosis in the literature, affects people with weakened immune systems due to various health problems or causes. After the infection has occurred, the person needs to be treated urgently. Black fungus disease should be aware of the fact that it can be fatal if left untreated.
What are the Symptoms of Black Fungus Disease?
The symptoms of black fungus disease can vary depending on which part of the body this type of fungus multiplies. Some of the symptoms that may occur can be summarized as follows:
•Fire,
•Coughing,
* Chest pain,
* Shortness of breath,
* The occurrence of swelling due to payouts in one part of the face,
•Headache,
* Feeling of fullness in the sinuses,
* The occurrence of black lesions on the bridge of the nose or inside the mouth,
• Stomach ache
* Nausea vomiting,
* Occurrence of bleeding in the digestive tract,
* Presence of blood in the stool,
•Diarrhea.
In people where the black fungus disease shows significant involvement in the skin area, this part of the skin collects water, acquires a red and edematous appearance. Over time, these lesions may acquire a black color and become hotter and more painful. A black fungus infection can also spread to various other parts of the body by passing into the blood. In this case, called disseminated mucormycosis infection, caution should be exercised, as important organs such as the spleen and heart can also be affected by the infection. In more severe cases, it can cause neurological involvement, causing life-threatening conditions such as altered consciousness and coma.
What Causes Black Fungus Disease?
Black fungus infection, mucormycosis is an ailment that develops after exposure to mold fungus. These organisms usually live in areas such as tree leaves, plant waste deposits, soil and the upper parts of decaying wood fragments. Apart from contact with these affected environmental structures, it can also be transmitted as a result of scattering spores of this fungus into the air and inhaling spores during inhalation in people present in this environment. This condition results in infection in the sinuses and lungs, which are cavities in the person's head. Later, eye, face and central nervous system involvement may occur. In cases that affect the skin, such as burns or cuts, there may also be transmission of black fungus disease.
Although this type of mold fungi is among the types of fungi that occur naturally in the environment, Decaying to healthy people is a rare condition. The situations in which the risk of this disease, which usually develops after contact of people with weakened immune systems with environmental parts containing black fungus, increases, can be summarized as follows:
* Presence of burns on the skin,
* Scratches and cuts,
* Cancer patients,
* People who have had a new organ transplant,
* AIDS that develops due to HIV infection,
• Diabetes is under control have not been taken,
* Passing the surgical operation.
Black fungus infection is a disease that can quickly spread to other parts of the body after transmission. If left untreated, it can spread to the brain and lung tissue in particular and follow a severe course such as infection, stroke, pneumonia, seizures and death in the brain tissue.
How is the Diagnosis of Black Fungus Disease?
Routine blood tests are often not enough on their own to detect black fungus disease. But in these tests, the detection of a deficiency in a person's white blood cells called neutrophils is considered a risk factor for developing black fungus disease. The use of radiological imaging examinations can be especially effective in revealing the spread of the disease. Examination of areas suspected of having black fungus disease by imaging methods allows to obtain an idea of the presence of the disease in the brain tissue, sinuses, lungs, abdomen or other body areas. In cases where mucormycosis infection is suspected in the nasal and sinus structures, endoscopic examination and tissue sampling during this examination are very valuable diagnostically. When the samples taken are examined, tissue death and the appearance of characteristic hyphal-shaped fungi indicate the presence of black fungus disease in a person. Apart from these methods, it is possible to reveal tissue edema, thickening and spread that occur in tissues such as the eye and brain by computed tomography method.
In people with a weakened immune system and complaints about the respiratory system, chest tomography is useful for clarifying a possible lung infection. However, the images obtained are not different findings from pneumonia cases that occur with other organisms. Some of the findings obtained in chest tomography are water collection, nodule development and frosted glass appearance. In these cases, monitoring the appearance of characteristic hyphae in microscopic examination of samples taken by sputum or bronchoalveolar lavage application is of diagnostic importance for black fungus disease.
How is the Treatment of Black Fungus Disease?
Treatment of people diagnosed with black fungus disease should be started as soon as possible. The basis of this treatment planning, on the other hand, are fungal infection drugs grouped as antifungals. Antifungal agents stop the growth of fungi that cause infection in the body, causing their damage. Thus, it allows the infection to be controlled.
Antifungal drugs used to treat black fungus disease can be used intravenously or in the form of pills. Usually, at the first stage of the treatment of the disease, doctors administer high doses of drugs intravenously and thus aim to control the infection. This stage of treatment can last for weeks. After the completion of intravenous treatment, doctors prescribe antifungal drugs to their patients, which they can take orally. Depending on the high dose and strength of the antifungal drugs used, many side effects may occur in patients. In the presence of side effects such as abdominal pain, burning in the stomach or shortness of breath, patients should inform their physicians about this. If necessary, doctors can make changes to the treatment plan by taking into account the side effects. In cases with a severe course, surgical intervention may also be involved. Tissues that have died due to black fungus infection are surgically removed, and thus it is aimed to prevent the spread of infection from these tissues to other parts of the body. This operation may even involve the removal of some of the organs such as the nose and eyes, if necessary. As a result of the operation, a number of disorders may occur in the appearance of patients, but it should be remembered that these operations may be necessary to control the black fungus infection, which can reach life-threatening dimensions.
Black fungus disease is a deadly disease if left untreated, but human-to-human transmission is out of the question. Personal protective measures to be taken during visits and trips to risky areas are among the most important steps that can be taken Decisively against this disease. It is very important to wear a mask when working in environments such as gardens and forests, especially in hot summer and spring months, and to thoroughly disinfect and wrap the wound area in case of possible injuries. If you observe signs and symptoms of this disease in yourself or around you, it is recommended to contact health institutions.