This new symptom, spotted in a diabetic woman, worries doctors.
- Since the start of the vaccination campaign in France, 15,865,844 people have received at least one injection (i.e. 23.7% of the total population and 30.2% of the adult population) and 6,537,534 people have received two injections (i.e. 9.8% of the total population and 12.4% of the adult population).
- The Covid-19 epidemic decline announced by the government is confirmed in the figures, but Public Health France warns that the indicators are still at a very high level.
The BMJ reports the case of a woman in whom Covid-19 has been associated with mucormycosis, a serious eye infection. “A new phenomenon in the developing world?”, ask the doctors.
Total left eye paralysis
Recently, a diabetic woman presented to the emergency room with left-sided facial pain and fever, which quickly subsided. Note that the patient suffered from a rare genetic disease (hyperglycemia without ketosis). “She also presented with total paralysis of the left eye, with a visual acuity of 6/36”, describe healthcare professionals, adding “that she had tested positive for Covid-19”.
A CT scan of the nose and a cerebral MRI revealed an infection of all the sinuses of the patient’s left side of the head, as well as a cerebrovascular accident (or ischemic stroke). An emergency sinus endoscopy confirmed the presence of mucormycosis.
Cerebral infarction
After a week of amphotericin B and conventional antibiotics, a new brain scan showed improvement in mucosal thickening and sinusitis. “This case is a rare presentation of mucormycosis, associated with rapid progression to orbital apex syndrome*, with cerebral infarction, in a patient with diabetes and Covid-19”, conclude the authors. In this case, “Early diagnosis and treatment are essential to prevent further end-organ damage,” they add.
*Orbital apex syndrome is defined as the combination of decreased visual acuity, ophthalmoplegia, ptosis, exophthalmos and anesthesia of the upper eyelid and forehead .
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