POST-COVID, SURGE IN DEADLY INFECTIONS

Long-lasting immunological damage leaving people susceptible to pathogens apart from vector-borne diseases

- VISMAY BASU @ New Delhi

INDIA is contending with a disquieting resurgence of communicable diseases in the aftermath of Covid-19.

Globally, the pandemic officially claimed 7,010,681 lives, though excess mortality estimates suggest that nearly 15-18 million perished in 2020-21.

Beyond the immediate fatalities, SARSCoV-2 inflicted longlasting immunological damage, leaving populations susceptible to a cascade of lethal infections and opportunistic pathogens.

Mucormycosis, the infamous black fungus, struck first in 2021-22, infecting 40,824 individuals and claiming 3,229 lives in India by June 2021, according to the National Centre for Disease Control. Its early manifestations-facial swelling, nasal congestion, and black oral lesions-often belied the rapidity of its cerebral invasion, which precipitated vision loss, debilitating headaches, seizures, and acute neurological confusion, frequently culminating in death.

Vector-borne diseases followed with irregular ferocity.