Common fungal skin diseases

The article was written by Specialist Doctor I Le Thi Thu Hang - Dermatologist, Department of Medical Examination & Internal Medicine - Vinmec Hai Phong International General Hospital.

Fungal skin disease is a common disease, the incidence rate is about 27.3%. Skin fungal diseases have many common ways of transmission such as: infection from fungal spores in the air and surrounding environment, infected animals infecting people, sick people spreading to healthy people... If there is someone in the house infected If you have a fungal infection, your loved one is at a very high risk of skin fungus if you do not pay attention to hygiene, share items, share a bed....

Our country is in the tropics (hot and humid) suitable for fungal skin diseases to develop. The most common are black fungus, tinea versicolor, interstitial fungus.... Fungi are a type of inferior organism without chlorophyll, so they cannot synthesize organic matter, but must live by parasitizing the host: plants, animals (dogs, cats, cattle...) and people.
Humans are infected with fungi from the following sources: environment (soil, trees, air...), animals (dogs, cats, horses...), sick people to healthy people. Favorable conditions for dermatophytosis are pH 6.9 - 7.2 slightly alkaline, closed skin areas, large interstitial folds or perspiration, dampness, poor personal hygiene, wearing tight clothing, abuse of soap, etc. sweat a lot, hot and humid temperature 27-35 degrees Celsius, reduced resistance, endocrine disorders, use of immunosuppressive drugs, long-term antibiotic use....

2.1 Tinea versicolor Ringworm is caused by the fungus Pityrosporum, usually has two forms: white form and black form. The disease causes itching, especially when exposed to the sun or the skin sweats a lot. At this time, the patient has a feeling of being lightly pricked, causing uncomfortable itching. Vitiligo depends quite a bit on skin hygiene, resistance, pH of the skin and even moisture of the skin. In some cases, someone in the same family has vitiligo, but other relatives do not.
2.2 Ringworm Typical is the fungus that causes ringworm with the first sign of itching in the affected area, then a reddish streak, with a distinct border and border, and flecks of vesicles on the edge. Fungal margins tend to spread more and more to form many arcs if not detected and treated in time. When the patient itch, scratching will spread the ringworm on many areas of his body.

Ringworm is one of the dermatological diseases capable of being transmitted from one person to another, usually by sharing household items such as sharing clothes, face towels - towels, sleeping in the same bed, covering The same blanket...
2.3 Interstitial fungus The cause of the disease is Epidermophyton, trichophyton, or Candida albicans. The disease is common in people with occupations that have to soak their feet in water for many hours, continuously for many days such as farmers, sewer cleaners, swimmers.... Interstitial fungus usually has 3 types: dry scabs, vesicles and interstitial inflammation.
2.4 Onychomycosis Nail fungus is usually caused by trichophyton. The disease occurs on the free margin of the nail or on the sides of the nail. When sick, the nail will lose its shine, be pushed up or down, the nail surface will have holes or grooves, and there is a powdery substance under the groove. The patient's nails are increasingly rough, yellow or opaque. The disease can be spread from one nail to another.
In addition to the trichophyton fungus, there is also a nail fungus caused by the fungus Candida albicans, which causes damage to the inside of the nail corner, the nail that grows out is convex and concave, the skin in the corner of the nail is also damaged, red, swollen and sometimes festering.
2.5 Hair fungus Hair fungus is caused by Piedra Hortai. The manifestation is that there are many black particles on each hair, but the patient does not feel anything out of the ordinary and the hair does not fall out. Meanwhile, hair fungus caused by Trichophyton shows lesions on the scalp with many small round spots, about 3-5mm in size, thin scaly scalp or itchy scalp.

Although it does not cause serious health consequences, fungal skin diseases are often persistent, easy to recur, making it difficult to treat. On the other hand, the following fungal infections will often be more severe, prolonged and difficult to stop than the previous one. Therefore, when encountering an abnormal condition on the skin, patients need to see a doctor, especially a specialist for diagnosis and necessary tests. From those results, the doctor prescribes the right treatment for the disease and the right medicine. Do not self-medicate to treat fungus because it can make the disease worse.
Medical Examination Department - Vinmec Times City International General Hospital is a reliable address, undertaking the diagnosis, treatment, prevention and rehabilitation of dermatological diseases (skin and its appendages including hairs) , hair, nails, sweat glands).
Vinmec Times City very effectively treats common diseases in dermatology such as: skin fungus, melasma, freckles, acne / scars / stretch marks, dermatitis, allergies / irritation, skin pigmentation diseases, skin aging, syphilis, warts, benign tumors in the skin, fingernails, moles.... Especially, at Vinmec Times City's Medical Department, there is Specialist Doctor I - Nguyen Thi Thu With more than 30 years of studying and working in the field of Dermatology, he will directly examine and treat patients.