A Retrospective Study on Diagnostic Triad and Multifactorial Causation of Fungal Rhinosinusitis in the Era of Covid 19

Background: The importance of this study is due to the outbreak of epidemic (AIFRS) in the COVID-19 pandemic, even in immunocompetent patients. A retrospective single-center study carried out in a tertiary care hospital, AKOLA. Study Methods: Conducted in patients with or without a history of COVID-19 who are clinically and radiologically suggestive of acute fungal rhino sinusitis. Data collected by interviewing the patient admitted to the ward during the period of July 2020 to July 2022 and from medical case records. All data analysis completed using a simple analytical method. The total number of enrolled patients is 166 and we did our study in 150 patients Results: as rest of them did not t into the inclusion criteria. The epidemic emerged due to multifactorial causes, including medical and environmental factors (temperature and humidity). The most common cause was COVID-19 infection in the background of anemia, thrombocytosis, and lymphocytopenia. We had 98 histopathologically proven cases of mucormycosis and 9 cases of mixed fungal infection. And the sensitivity and specicity of HPE were 94.8% and 100%, respectively. We present a broad concept of the range of diseases (acute, granulomatous, a Conclusion: nd chronic invasive fungal rhino sinusitis) that have been linked to the host immune response during the COVID-19 pandemic. A high index of clinical suspicion and multidisciplinary approach will aid in the diagnosis of AIFRS and enable early management to reduce morbidity and mortality.