Invasive zygomycosis in India: experience in a tertiary care hospital

Aim:To report the natural history and clinical course of zygomycosis from a single tertiary care centre in India where doctors maintain an institutional zygomycosis registry.Methods:The clinical and laboratory data collected prospectively from patients with antemortem diagnosis for invasive zygomycosis, and retrospectively from autopsy diagnosed cases, over an 18 month period (July 2006–December 2007) were combined and analysed.Results:During the period 75 cases (50 cases/year) of zygomycosis were reported. Antemortem diagnosis could be made in 81% of cases and 9% of patients had nosocomial zygomycosis. The spectrum of disease included rhino-orbito-cerebral (48%), pulmonary (17%), gastrointestinal (13%), cutaneous (11%), renal and disseminated zygomycosis (5% each). Uncontrolled type 2 diabetes (58%) and diabetic ketoacidosis (38%) in the rhino-orbito-cerebral type, renal failure (69%) in the pulmonary type, prematurity (70%) in the gastrointestinal type, and breach of skin (88%) in cutaneous zygomycosis, were the significant (p