Mucormycosis is a rare but potentially life-threatening disease caused by fungi known as mucormycetes. (Image credit: KATERYNA KON/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY via Getty Images)
Disease name: Mucormycosis, also known as “black fungus”
Affected populations: Mucormycosis is a potentially fatal fungal infection that most often affects people with weakened immune systems, such as diabetics or patients with severe forms of COVID-19, including those recovering from the infection. It can also affect people who have had a solid organ transplant or people with low levels of white blood cells, the immune system cells that fight infections. People with HIV and those taking immune-suppressing drugs are also at increased risk of developing mucormycosis.
The World Health Organization estimates that the incidence of mucormycosis ranges from 0.005 to 1.7 per million people worldwide. The incidence is significantly higher in some countries, such as India, where the number of cases at any one time can be approximately 80 times higher, which may be related to climate conditions and the prevalence of certain fungal species in the environment.
The exact incidence of mucormycosis in the United States remains unknown; because the disease is rare, there is no national monitoring program to track it. However, a study conducted in San Francisco in the late 1990s estimated that there may be 1.7 new cases of mucormycosis per million people each year.
Causes: Mucormycosis is caused by fungi known as mucormycetes, specifically species of the genus Rhizopus. The spores of these fungi are present in nature, including soil, leaf litter, compost, manure, and the atmosphere. People can become infected with mucormycosis by inhaling or ingesting these spores, or if the spores enter the body through wounds or burns.
Mucormycetes spores can exist harmlessly in most people and usually cause infection only in certain immunocompromised individuals. Most cases of mucormycosis are incidental—that is, they are not associated with any common source of infection. However, outbreaks have been reported; for example, in healthcare settings, outbreaks can occur when fungal spores contaminate medical supplies or ventilation systems.
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(Image credit: Future)
A patient with an inflamed eye caused by a mucormycosis infection. (Photo credit: CDC/Dr. Libero Ajello via the Public Health Image Library
Sourse: www.livescience.com
