FUNGAL INFECTION – TYPES, CAUSES, SYMPTOMS, PREVENTION & TREATMENT
Fungal skin
infections are caused by certain types of fungus, or excessive growth of
normally harmless types. Fungal skin infections usually affect your skin
because they live off keratin, a protein that makes up your skin, hair and
nails. Most fungal skin infections can be treated effectively.
Types of Fungal Infections
Fungal
skin infections are divided into groups, depending on what type of organism is
involved. The full name depends on where the infection is found on your body.
Some common fungal skin infections are listed below.
Dermatophyte infections
Most
basic fungal skin infections are caused by dermatophytes — types of fungi that
cause skin, nail and hair infections. They are very common. Dermatophyte
infections include the following:
· Athlete's foot (tinea pedis and tinea
manuum). Around one in four adults have athlete's foot (tinea pedis) at
some time in their lives. It can be caused by a combination of fungi and
bacteria, which makes your skin itchy, dry, scaly and red. Sometimes it causes
blisters and cracked skin. It’s especially common between your toes. You often
pick up athlete's foot from coming into contact with contaminated skin left
behind in swimming pools, showers and saunas. If you don't wash your hands
after touching a contaminated area, it can spread to your hands where it's
known as tinea manuum. This mostly affects the creases on your palms and sides
of your fingers.
· Nail infections.
Onychomycosis is the name for any fungal nail infection. Tinea unguium
(ringworm of your nails) is a common infection. Your nails become malformed,
thickened and crumbly. Not all nails affected like this are caused by fungal
infections, but it's a common cause. Toenail infections are commonly linked
with athlete's foot. Your fingernails can be affected too.
· Ringworm of the groin (tinea cruris). This
is often called 'jock itch' because it occurs in sportspeople and is common
among young men. It causes an itchy, red rash in your groin and the surrounding
area and is usually seen in men who’ve been sweating a lot. Often you’ll also
have athlete's foot, as the infection can be spread by scratching your groin
after scratching your infected feet.
· Ringworm on the body (tinea corporis). This
often affects exposed areas of your body, such as your abdomen (tummy) or your
limbs, causing red raised or flat patches and rings that can merge, grow and
spread from the centre. The rings are scaly at the edge surrounding clear skin
in the middle.
· Ringworm of the scalp (tinea capitis). This
usually affects young children. It can cause hair loss and inflammation of the
affected area. You can be infected by this fungus without developing any
symptoms, and become a carrier instead, spreading the infection to others,
sometimes for years.
Yeast infections
Yeast
infections include the following:
· Thrush. The
fungus Candida albicans usually lives naturally in us and rarely causes
problems. However, in certain situations, such as if you're ill, have poorly
controlled diabetes, are pregnant
or using antibiotics, the fungi multiply and can cause thrush symptoms.
Thrush can affect your mouth and tongue, areas lined with a mucus membrane such as your vagina, and other moist, folded skin. Thrush infection often looks like small white patches, which leave a red mark when rubbed off. In adults, vaginal thrush can cause itchiness and a thick, white discharge. Thrush sometimes affects men, causing a painful red rash on the head of the penis (glans). It also commonly affects newborn babies in the mouth (oral thrush) where the white patches may be mistaken for breast or formula milk. It isn't usually serious, but babies with thrush in their throats may stop feeding properly. Babies may also develop thrush in the nappy area.
Thrush can affect your mouth and tongue, areas lined with a mucus membrane such as your vagina, and other moist, folded skin. Thrush infection often looks like small white patches, which leave a red mark when rubbed off. In adults, vaginal thrush can cause itchiness and a thick, white discharge. Thrush sometimes affects men, causing a painful red rash on the head of the penis (glans). It also commonly affects newborn babies in the mouth (oral thrush) where the white patches may be mistaken for breast or formula milk. It isn't usually serious, but babies with thrush in their throats may stop feeding properly. Babies may also develop thrush in the nappy area.
· Intertrigo. This
is also caused by the normally harmless fungus Candida albicans, which lives on
your skin and in your digestive system. It affects areas where skin touches
skin and the environment is warm and moist, such as your armpits, groin, and
under heavy breasts or fat folds. It can cause itching, soreness, spots and
scales, creating a white-yellow curd over the infected area.
· Pityriasis versicolor. This
infection causes dark patches to form on pale or untanned skin and light
patches on tanned or darker skin. Another name for this condition is tinea
versicolor (versicolor means 'of various colours').
Causes of fungal skin infections
You're
more at risk of getting a fungal skin infection if you:
- have recently taken a course of antibiotics
- are taking steroids
- have high blood sugar levels (for example, if you have uncontrolled diabetes)
- are overweight
- have had fungal skin infections in the past
- have a weakened immune system caused, for example, by cancer or HIV/AIDS.
Moist
skin encourages fungal skin infections. This means you're more likely to pick
one up if you don't dry your skin properly after sweating or bathing, or if you
wear tight clothes that don't allow sweat to evaporate. Damage to the surface
of your skin, such as a cut or graze, can also encourage fungi to grow.
Fungal
infections inside your body can cause more serious health problems than those
on your skin. These infections only affect people whose immune systems aren't
working properly — either as a result of an illness such as HIV/AIDS, or because you're
taking medicines that suppress your immune system.
How do fungal skin infections spread?
Fungal
skin infections can be spread from person to person. For example, athlete's
foot is thought to be spread in communal areas, such as gyms and swimming
pools. Contact with bed sheets or towels and personal items such as hairbrushes
can also spread fungal infections. It's also possible to catch some fungal
infections from animals such as cats or dogs, and, more rarely, cattle.
Ringworm is occasionally caught this way.
Diagnosis of fungal skin infections
Your
doctor will ask about your symptoms and examine you. He or she will look at the
appearance and location of your rash. They may also take a skin scraping, or a
fragment of your nail or hair, and send it to a laboratory for
testing, to confirm the diagnosis.
Treatment of fungal skin infections
As most
fungal skin infections are on the surface of your skin, you’ll usually be able
to apply topical antifungal treatments directly onto your skin in the infected
area.
There
are a variety of treatments available in the form of creams, lotions and
medicated powders. Some treatments are available over-the-counter from
pharmacists. For example, there are sprays available for treating athlete's
foot and antifungal shampoos for scalp infections. Ask your pharmacist for
advice.
However,
if the infection covers quite a large area of your skin, or affects your nails
or scalp, your doctor may give you a prescription for a stronger medication,
which is often in tablet form.
These
treatments are usually effective. They can occasionally cause side effects
which may include skin irritation for topical treatments or an upset stomach
for oral medicines. It isn't unusual for your infection to return, even when it
seems to have been treated. You’ll usually be advised to keep using topical
treatments for two weeks after symptoms have disappeared. You may need to take some
treatments for a few weeks, or up to 18 months for toenail infections.
If
you're buying an over-the-counter or from directly from medical shop, antifungal
treatment, you need to be sure that you have a fungal infection. Sometimes a
new rash may look like a previously diagnosed fungal infection. But if there is
any doubt about your diagnosis, or if over-the-counter treatments don't work,
contact your doctor.
Prevention of fungal skin infections
There
are some steps you can take to reduce your risk of getting a fungal skin
infection, such as:
- drying your skin carefully after bathing
- wearing loose fitting clothes and underwear
- choosing cotton socks and natural fibre underwear to allow your skin to breathe
- not sharing towels, hair brushes, and combs
- washing bed linen and clothes often to get rid of fungal spores
- throwing away or disinfecting pillows, hats, combs or scissors if someone in your family has scalp ringworm
- always wearing thongs or plastic shoes in communal areas such as swimming pools and change rooms
- · alternating shoes every two or three days so that they have time to dry out (to help prevent athlete's foot)
- wearing synthetic fibres that 'wick' the sweat away from the body, helping to keep your skin dry if you're exercising.
If you
have diabetes, you need to keep your blood sugar levels under control, as high
blood sugar levels can increased your risk of developing bacterial and fungal
skin infections.
(SOURCE: Bupa Healthcare)
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Source: This article inspired from various online articles and own
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