Collection of rare complications deepens India's COVID misery

Rare, life-threatening COVID-19 complications appear to be escalating in India, creating a fresh wave of critical medical challenges in a country that has already seen short supplies of oxygen and other basic needs.

Pharmacists are warning of a shortage of a crucial drug to treat an invasive fungal infection preying on patients with weakened immune systems. An uptick in cases across India of a dangerous inflammatory syndrome in children — also seen in the U.S. and Europe at the height of their outbreaks — is a harbinger of a potentially deadly spate of the pediatric illness in the coming weeks.
There are as many as 1,500 patients with this condition, known locally as "black fungus," in Maharashtra alone, with the state government expecting 200 new cases every week. Rajasthan has declared it an epidemic in the state.
Patients treated for the coronavirus infection are often given a plethora of unnecessary medications in India, including antibiotics, antivirals and steroids, researchers said. This can trigger or exacerbate other complications in some cases.

"Pressure on doctors and panic among patients is making it worse," Guleria said. "There's sometimes a knee-jerk reaction among physicians, who choose aggressive medical treatments instead of being conservative."
Cheap steroid medications used to calm an exaggerated inflammatory response to the coronavirus have helped drive cases of mucormycosis, said Leena Menghaney, the New Delhi-based regional lead for aid group Doctors Without Borders' access to essential medicines campaign in Asia.