Mixed Aspergillosis and Mucormycosis Infections in Patients With Covid-19: Case Series and Literature Review Publisher Pubmed



Sasani E¹ ; Pakdel F² ; Khodavaisy S^{3, 4} ; Salehi M⁵ ; Salami A⁶ ; Sohrabi M⁵ ; Aminishakiba P⁷ ; Amirafzali I⁸ ; Salami Khaneshan A⁵
Source: Mycopathologia Published:2024

Abstract

Background: Mucormycosis and aspergillosis are angioinvasive infections mainly occurring in immunocompromised patients. However, mixed infection with mucormycosis and aspergillosis in post-COVID-19 patients is rare. In this report, we will report four cases and comprehensively review the published literature on COVID-19 associated mixed infection of aspergillosis and mucormycosis. Method: Besides four of our cases, we searched for published articles using PubMed/MEDLINE, Scopus, and Web of Science databases from the beginning of 2020 until October 2023. Result: During the COVID-19 pandemic, we analyzed 52 cases (4 from our research and 48 from other studies). The most common underlying disease (59.6%) was diabetes mellitus. However, 19.2% of COVID-19 patients had no underlying condition. Interestingly, rhino-orbital-cerebral mucormycosis featured prominently in India and Iran, while other countries primarily reported a higher prevalence of pulmonary cases. Conclusion: In conclusion, this study highlights the presence of mixed aspergillosis and mucormycosis in COVID-19 patients who previously had common underlying diseases or even a healthy immune system. Therefore, managing COVID-19 patients should involve screening serum and respiratory samples using biomarkers to detect superinfections. © 2024, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature B.V.