This case was adapted from: Usatine R, Yao C. Photos and text for Photo Rounds Friday courtesy of Richard P. The medical term is tinea cruris or ringworm of the groin. Jock itch is an infection of the groin area caused by a fungus. Tablets of 250 mg terbinafine (most affordable of all the choices) can be broken in half for younger children and the dose should always be calculated based on weight.įluconazole comes in various tablets, strengths, and liquid formulations and can be prescribed for 3 to 6 weeks, as needed. Ringworm of the scalp is a fungal infection that affects the scalp. Ringworm is a highly contagious infection that’s usually spread through. Tinea capitis primarily occurs in children. Also called Tinea capitis, this infection affects your scalp and hair shafts, causing small patches of itchy, scaly skin. The infection is often contracted from another human or an animal through direct contact. Trichophyton and Microsporum species of dermatophyte fungi are the major causes of tinea capitis.
Oral terbinafine tablets are less expensive and shorter courses of therapy may be used. Tinea capitis is a fungal infection of the scalp that most often presents with pruritic, scaling areas of hair loss. However, at least 6 to 8 weeks of treatment (20 mg/kg/d) is required. Griseofulvin comes in an oral suspension making it a desirable option for children who can’t swallow pills. Oral antifungal choices include griseofulvin, terbinafine, and fluconazole. Topical antifungal therapy is not adequate for tinea capitis oral treatment is needed. The reason that the infected area did not fluoresce was that the dermatophyte was within the hair shaft (endothrix) rather than external to the hair (exothrix). In cases needing Sepia, there are circular ringworm patches on the scalp that are mainly isolated. Sepia is a top grade medicine for treating cases of tinea capitis.
This microscopic picture was consistent with Trichophyton tonsurans, the most common cause of tinea capitis in the United States. The top grade homeopathic medicines to treat tinea capitis include Sepia, Tellurium, Arsenic Album, Mezereum and Calcarea Carb. Microscopic examination revealed branching hyphae and some broken hairs with fungal elements within the hair shaft. New Latin : Medieval Latin tinea, tinea + Latin capitis, genitive of caput, head. The child was very cooperative and the doctor was able to perform a potassium hydroxide (KOH) preparation by scraping the areas of alopecia with the edge of one glass slide while catching the scale on another slide. An infection of the scalp caused by fungi of the genera Microsporum or Trichophyton, characterized by itchy, scaly patches and sometimes hair loss ringworm of the scalp. The Family Physician (FP) noted patchy alopecia with scaling of the scalp and made the presumptive diagnosis of tinea capitis.Ī woods lamp examination did not demonstrate fluorescence.