MUCORMYCOSIS - A RARE COMPLICATION IN PAT IENTS WITH DIABETES-MELLITUS - A CASE-REPORT

Mucormycosis usually occurs in immunocompromised patients or in patien ts with diabetes mellitus. Pathogens are moulds of the mucorales speci es. The diagnosis is made by histological examination of biopsies. A 3 9 year-old patient with insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus was admitt ed with a tentative diagnosis of a tumour of the maxilla. After diagno sis of hyphae of the mucorales species, the patient's diabetes was sta bilised and he was treated over 17 weeks with amphotericin B (40 mg pe r day) and made a good recovery. A 58 year-old insulin-dependent patie nt with ethmoidali and sphenoidali sinusitis did not respond to antibi otic therapy. Mucormycosis was diagnosed by means of biopsy. Although treatment with amphotericin B was started, the patient died after 3 we eks due to multiple organ failure.