Treating mucormycosis using a multimodality approach: a case series

Most fungal infections found in wounds are secondary or superadded, and are generally benign in their clinical course in healthy individuals, with the exception of mucormycosis. This is a life-threatening infection caused by fungi of the order Mucorales. Primary cutaneous disease may occur following traumatic implantation of spores, or use of contaminated bandages, or as a complication of extensive burns, diabetic acidosis and other specific immunocompromised conditions. The clinical spectrum is highly non-specific and is often triggered by seemingly innocuous trauma. The superficial vesicles or patchy erythema rapidly degrade to haemorrhagic necrosis and rapidly progressive gangrenous lesion. The problem with diagnosing mucormycosis remains, therefore, that the condition has poor clinical indicators and requires reliance on microscopy and fungal culture. Management starts with a clinical suspicion, taking into account the risk factors and lack of response to first-line agents, as well as an aggressive clinical course. Treatment is multimodal, with medical correction of the risk factors and optimisation of limiting factors, such as diabetes, neutropenia and immunosuppressants. Treatment generally involves radical and repetitive surgical debridement, intravenous amphotericin B with monitoring of the nephrotoxicity, along with adjuvant modalities, such as hyperbaric oxygen therapy, colony stimulating factor, interferons gamma and white blood cell transfusion. Successful courses of therapy typically last 4-6 weeks and require cumulative doses that are equivalent to >2g of amphotericin B deoxycholate.