Amid rising cases of mucormycosis, which is also known as Black Fungus, chemists in Maharashtra may soon find it hard to source Amphotericin B. The injection is now in high demand for COVID-19 associated fungal infection mucormycosis.
As the state health department and collectors will control the supply with district-wise allocation and distribution to hospitals based on demand for treatment of mucormycosis.
Reports suggest that Maharashtra has 1,500 mucormycosis patients of which 850 are hospitalised. However, experts say that this may be an underestimation with several private doctors not reporting patients. Besides, state Health Minister Rajesh Tope had said that so far 90 people have died across the state due to Black Fungus with Nagpur reporting the maximum number of cases.
Patients undergoing home treatment may face difficulty in accessing the drug as it will be generated by hospitals. Officials said they can approach the collector office or their doctors can issue a requirement to the health department to buy an injection.
Also Read: Rajesh Tope announces free treatment of Mucormycosis under Mahatma Jyotiba Phule Jan Arogya Yojana
Based on the fungal spread, each patient requires 90-120 injections of amphotericin B for treatment stretching up to 15 days. The state’s daily requirement is 10,000 injections and the fortnightly requirement is at least 1.50 lakh.
According to the data by Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the injection is in short supply as the state received 8,500 injections while Mumbai’s BMC received 1,000 injections in the past eight days.
Meanwhile, National Health Mission issued a notification to all district collectors to monitor stock with chemists, hospitals and take control of the supply of future stock. It also states that the disbursement should be based on prescription and demand raised by hospitals.
Moreover, the stock will be diverted from civic hospitals to private hospitals that are facing an acute shortage, a government notification said. The distribution channel is similar to anti-viral Remdesivir, which faced an acute shortage between March and early May.
Major suppliers of amphotericin B are Cipla, Bharat Serum, Mylan and BDR Pharmaceuticals. The government is giving permission to new manufacturers to increase the supply.
Also Read: Mucormycosis has 50 per cent mortality rate: Rajesh Tope
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