By 1 2 1 News Reporter
Chandigarh,12th September:--- Prof. Y K Chawla, Director, PGIMER, Chandigarh released a new book 'Fungal Infections in Asia: The Eastern Frontier of Mycology' today i.e. 12.9.2013. The book is edited by Dr. Arunaloke Chakrabarti, Professor & Head, Department of Medical Microbiology, PGIMER, Chandigarh and published by Elsevier. Twenty eminent clinicians and medical mycologists from India and abroad have contributed chapters in the book. In this era of globalization, is there a need to write a book specifically for a particular region? That was in the mind of the Editor, Prof. Chakrabarti. If the subject is fungal infections, there are several reasons to write one for the Asian component. The largest continent of the world with more than half of global population has geographical conditions that favour the growth of many fungi with some very unique species. Socio-economic conditions like overcrowding, compromised health care facilities and lack of awareness add to the morbidity and mortality of fungal diseases in this part of the world. However, there is a dearth of epidemiological data pertaining to the Asian countries and reference is mostly extrapolated from available literature of the western world. But the Asian picture is somewhat different from the more visible western data in terms of the causative species, natural history and management strategies and there was a definite need to document these findings – this was the primary aim of starting this book project. Although the picture is yet to be complete, the authors have attempted to compile a comprehensive text highlighting the distinctive features of fungal infections in Asia. The book has been written within three and half months, which shows all the authors and the editor have worked hard to make this difficult task possible within such a short time
There are more fungal infections in Asia than anywhere else. Remarkable examples include the estimated 1 million adults with allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis (ABPA) complicating asthma in India and China alone; the 160,000 cases of invasive aspergillosis in China annually; the 170,000 cases of mucormycosis in India annually, a rate ~70 times higher than anywhere else in the world; the highest burden of chronic pulmonary aspergillosis after tuberculosis is all over Asia (India, China, and Indonesia), contributing nearly 50% of the world's total; the highest rates of fungal keratitis in the world are in Nepal, Myanmar, Bhutan, and India; and candidemia and fungal sinusitis are particularly common, but not yet fully quantified.
For these reasons, this book is timely and comes from a pedigree group of authors. In addition to describing the frequency and peculiarities of fungal infections in Asia, among which there are several intriguingly distinctive characteristics, the authors address the diagnostic challenges in what is usually a resource-constrained setting for most of Asia's patients. Optimal management for good clinical outcomes is logically set out, with the overarching question 'Are separate guidelines and management algorithms for patients in Asia required?' compared to Europe, North America, or Africa. The major diagnostic and therapeutic steps forward in the arena of fungal disease over the last 15 years are strikingly illuminated in this book, as they should be. Great reductions in mortality and improvements in quality of life are possible with judicious antifungal prophylaxis, avoidance of excess corticosteroids, optimal control of underlying disease, fast and accurate fungal disease diagnosis, and modern antifungal drugs prescribed carefully and monitored. Mycology expertise is now critically important for many clinicians working with the most vulnerable of patients, and this book provides a magnificent entry point for many physicians, pharmacists, and laboratory scientists involved in the care of these patients
This book is not only for the students of Mycology but also for the multidisciplinary team that take care of patients with fungal infections. It attempts to describe the epidemiology of fungal infections in Asia and the appropriate management strategies. This will also be useful to our colleagues in the western world who may not be acquainted with the peculiar problems encountered in Asian countries. Perhaps it may help them while treating a patient who migrated from Asia. With the world fast converting into a global village, the east and the west shall definitely meet.
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