The excessive and inappropriate use of antimicrobials such as azithromycin, doxycycline, ivermectin during the treatment of COVID-19, and during secondary infections, are fuelling the raging pandemic of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). This was stated Dr Tanu Singhal, Paediatrician and Infectious Disease Specialist, Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital, Mumbai while speaking at a session during the 108th Indian Science Congress (ISC) in Nagpur, on 4th January 2023.

Dr Tanu Singhal further said that secondary infections have been responsible for considerable morbidity and mortality during the pandemic. "The most dramatic secondary infection in the Indian context has been COVID-19 associated mucormycosis (CAM) also termed as “black fungus”. More than 50,000 cases of CAM were reported in India mainly during the second wave", she said.

She also emphasised that the main reasons for CAM were the immunosuppressive effects of COVID-19 itself, the excessive use of steroids, co-existing diabetes and high fungal spore counts in the Indian environment.

This session also involved the participation of Dr Rakesh K. Agrawal, Director, Brahma Management Services, Lucknow; Dr Devendra K. Agrawal, Professor and Director, Department of Translational Research, Western University of Health Sciences, Pomona, US; Dr Vineet Agrawal, Assistant Professor of Medicine and Cardiology, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, US; Dr Vithyalakshmi Selvaraj, Psychiatrist and Managing Director, Omaha Insomnia and Psychiatric Services, US.