What is the "black fungus" that causes deaths in India?
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(CNN Spanish) -
In Uruguay, they detected mucormycosis or “black fungus” in a man under 50 years of age who suffers from diabetes and who had recently recovered from covid-19.
The infectologist Henry Albornoz, a member of the team that is treating the patient, told CNN this Thursday that the man had begun to present necrosis (death of the tissue) in the mucosa area for which he was subjected to a laboratory test that confirmed the infection.
He added that there is another suspicious case that is under investigation.
The patient is receiving treatment at an intensive treatment center (ICU) in Montevideo.
At the moment it is unknown if this is the first case of black fungus in a recovered from covid-19 in the country.
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Mucormycosis is a rare disease that has been detected among patients who have recovered from COVID-19 in India, especially those with diabetes.
It is caused by a fungus found in humid environments and can attack the respiratory tract.
It is not contagious and is not passed from person to person.
Various types of fungi can cause the disease but are not harmful to most people, although they can cause serious infections in individuals with weakened immune systems, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CDC .
"Black fungus" strikes in India, amid the covid-19 crisis: what you need to know
Darío Klein contributed to this report
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