A fungal infection would double the risk of death in patients with a severe form of Covid-19.
- Currently, there are 116 deaths per day in hospital due to Covid-19 in France.
- This figure has increased by more than 50% in the last seven days.
Currently, there are 243 new daily critical care admissions due to Covid-19, according to the latest figures available. These patients usually have a severe form of the disease. According to a study published in the scientific journal The Lancet Respiratory Medicinepeople with a severe form of Covid-19 and also infected with invasive aspergillosis, would be at greater risk of dying.
Invasive aspergillosis, a common infection in immunocompromised people
Invasive aspergillosis is the third cause of invasive infection due to fungi in France. In question, the so-called species Aspergillus fumigatus, which affects immunocompromised subjects and, in particular, those hospitalized in intensive care for a Covid-19 infection. Symptoms are fever, cough, chest pain, difficulty breathing, etc. “Invasive aspergillosis is a disease that we know well in the hospital in very immunocompromised patientsexplains Professor Jean-Pierre Gangneux, co-author of the study. In recent years, we have seen it appear in people who had severe flu with acute respiratory distress syndrome”.
Double the risk of death
To achieve their results, the researchers studied the data of 576 patients in intensive care in eighteen hospitals across France. According to their results, those with a severe form of Covid-19 and also infected with invasive aspergillosis had twice the risk of death (61.8% versus 32.1%). “This co-infection with a fungus is a major event that aggravates the aftermath of a serious Covid-19 infection”, explains Jean-Pierre Gangneux.
Age, medications and mechanical ventilation: risk factors
According to scientists, some patients are more at risk of being infected with invasive aspergillosis. They identified three factors. First of all the age for those over 62 years old. Then, two drugs against Covid-19 and, finally, the fact that a patient is put on artificial respiration, via mechanical ventilation, for more than fifteen days. “There are aggravating factors related to the treatmentemphasizes Jean-Pierre Gangneux. For a large majority of people, these are effective treatments, which make it possible to treat the background disease. But these treatments sometimes promote the emergence of infections”.
Towards preventive solutions for fungal infections?
Knowing the link between this type of fungal infection, Covid-19 and increased patient mortality should, according to the researchers, make it possible to develop an index of suspicion. Eventually, they hope that this will also make it possible to better monitor the appearance of infections due to fungi, in particular for people with a severe form of the virus. For the moment, scientists do not know if a treatment against this type of fungal infection should be administered as a preventive measure. Further studies will be conducted to answer this question.
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