Chandigarh, June 2 (PTI) Mucormycosis has claimed 43 lives in Punjab till date, state health minister Balbir Singh Sidhu said on Wednesday.

He said the state has reported a total of 300 cases of mucormycosis or the black fungus infections out of which 23 patients were cured but 234 are still under treatment.

He said out of 300 cases reported so far, 259 patients were from Punjab and 41 were from other states.

After the analysis by health experts, it has come to light that diabetes is a major risk factor in mucormycosis cases, he stated in an official release here.

The minister informed that 25 per cent of mucormycosis patients were in the age group 18-45, 38 per cent in 45-60 and 36 per cent were above 60 years.

He said about 80 per cent of the mucormycosis cases were COVID-19 patients and 87 per cent of them had diabetes as a major risk factor.

While 32 per cent of the cases were immuno-compromised, he stated.

Sidhu said patients who are tested Covid-positive or who had COVID-19 in the recent past and are diabetic should avoid taking steroids and should consult doctors if they have nasal stuffiness, blackish discharge from nose or discolouration of inside mouth so that treatment could be initiated at the earliest.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)