ABSTRACT
Context: The current pandemic of COVID-19 affected all people of the world. Evidence Acquisition: Most complications of SARS-CoV-2 are causally related to severe pneumonia due to host immune response in the form of a cytokine storm. The other causes of an increased mortality rate among COVID-19 patients are secondary infections. Results: Mucormycosis is a life-threatening infection that gained much attention in the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. A rise in the frequency of COVID-19-associated mucormycosis (CAM) occurred in 2020 and 2021. Overall, mortality of CAM has been reported as 54%-75%. Conclusions: Although awareness of the disease has increased among treating physicians, disease-associated morbidity and mortality are still high. The guideline is intended to serve as a reference to prevent mucormycosis in COVID-19 patients and help health-care providers choose diagnostic and treatment methods for the best management of CAM cases.
ABSTRACT
Purpose : A high incidence of sinu-orbital Mucormycosis as a fulminant and opportunistic fungal infection happened following the COVID-19 pandemic. Traditionally, patients with apical or extensive orbital involvement are candidates for exenteration. We designed and applied CT scan guided orbital amphotericin C delivery. In this study we aimed to report this novel technique and results of this method in control of orbital mucormycosis with apical involvement. Methods : A high incidence of sinu-orbital Mucormycosis as a fulminant and opportunistic fungal infection happened following the COVID-19 pandemic. Thus named as CAM. Traditionally, patients with orbital mucormycosis with apical or extensive involvement are considered hopeless for saving the eye. We designed and applied CT scan guided orbital amphotericin C delivery. Results : A total of thirty patients with mean age of 52±11.86 were enrolled in this study. Twenty-three (76.7%) patients were male;group A: 11 (73.3%) and B: 12 (80%). The majority of the patients in both group were diabetics (A: 10 (66.7%), B: 10 (76.9%)). Most patients in both groups had received corticosteroids and antiviral therapy for their recent COVID-19, 23 (82.1%) and 25 (89.3%), respectively. No patient in group A underwent exenteration. Eleven (78.6%) patients in group B underwent orbital exenteration. Of the 6 expired patients, 5 (83.3%) were in group B (P<0.0001). Peri-orbital ecchymosis and intracranial air extension were observed in 2 (13.3%) and 1 (6.7%) in group A patients, respectively. Conclusions : Intra-orbital amphotericin injection under CT-guidance can be considered as a highly effective method in patients with orbital mucormycosis. This method may decrease exenteration without increasing mortality of patients.
ABSTRACT
Background: With the emergence and spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) globally, health care systems have faced the biggest challenge in recent decades. Objectives: The present study aimed to identify risk factors associated with oropharyngeal candidiasis (OPC) in COVID-19 patients. Methods: The total number of confirmed COVID-19 patients was 218 (105 cases with OPC and 113 controls without OPC). The questionnaire used in this study consisted of demographic data, treatment strategy, clinical and laboratory data, and underlying diseases collected from the onset of clinical OPC until the end of hospitalization. Results: Pseudomembranous candidiasis (77/105, 73.3%) was the most prevalent form of OPC in case patients. The majority of the cases (58.1%) and controls (58.4%) were males. Increasing age (P = 0.03) and hospitalization length (P = 0.016) were significantly associated with OPC in COVID-19 patients. Diabetes (P = 0.003), solid tumor (P = 0.019), and hypertension (P = 0.000) were the most common underlying conditions. The use of dentures (P = 0.003) and poor oral hygiene (P = 0.000) were related to OPC in the case group. Therapy with chloroquine (P = 0.012), IVIG (P = 0.001), diuretics (P = 0.000), and corticosteroid pulse therapy (P = 0.000) were significantly associated with developing OPC in case patients. Conclusions: Old age, hospitalization length, poor oral hygiene, corticosteroids use, diabetes, solid tumor, and hypertension may predispose COVID-19 patients to develop OPC. © 2021, Author(s). This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) which permits copy and redistribute the material just in noncommercial usages, provided the original work is properly cited.