On Monday afternoon, a 34-year-old businessman was brought in a special air ambulance from Indore to Mumbai, after being diagnosed with green fungus in his sinus, lungs and blood. He had recovered from month-long Covid-19. Mumbai doctors said he isn`t the first case of green fungus (aspergillus infection) in a Covid-19 patient. They are seeing a significant rise in such cases along with other fungal infections like the widely reported mucormycosis — black fungus.

Aspergillosis is the infection caused by Aspergillus, the common mould that lives indoors and outdoors. Dr Ravi Dosi, the pulmonologist who was treating the businessman in Shri Aurobindo Institute of Medical Science in Indore, said he had never seen such an aggressive aspergillus infection. “He had a severe Covid-19 infection two months back. He recovered and got discharged a month back. He returned 10 days back with a nose bleed, high fever and weakness. Diagnostic tests revealed he had aspergillus infection in his sinus, lungs and blood,” said Dr Dosi. The patient’s family decided to shift him to Mumbai’s PD Hinduja Hospital where he is presently admitted in the ICU.