Athletes Foot. Tinea pedis and tinea unguium arehigh prevalent cutaneous fungal infection in the general population and although these two conditions seem not to be so serious, they are highly infectious, chronic and therapeutically difficult.

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ATHLETE’S FOOT                

Athlete's Foot

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Athlete's Foot

Introduction

Athlete’s foot is also medically known as tinea pedis. This is a fungal infection that occurs when fungus grows on the skin in the feet and toes. This growth may also occur in the heels, palms and even between the fingers. This fungus growth is more in areas that are moist and warm with the risk increasing to those individuals who; wear closed shoes especially the plastic-lined, keep their feet wet for a long time, sweat a lot and those who have a minor injury on their skin or nail. Athlete's foot infections range from mild to severe and may last a short or long time. Individuals suffering from this condition are advised not to share personal items such as shoes, stockings or socks as its contagious and can be passed from an infected person to un-infected one through direct contact. The fungus also spreads to infect the nails discoloring, thickening and crumbling them. The major symptoms include; red, itchy skin, stinging pain plus a burning sensation and crusty blisters.

Treatment

Simple self care procedures can help one manage and prevent athlete’s foot. They include; Keeping the feet dry especially between the toes after taking a bath or swimming, use of antifungal powder if susceptible to athlete’s foot infection, keeping the feet clean always by washing them at least twice a day and wearing clean socks always especially cotton fabric socks, and also changing them more often.

Medically, antifungal treatment containing miconazole, clotrimazole, or tolnaftate up to two weeks after the infection has ceased to prevent re-occurrence. However, if the infection persists, stronger medications such as ketoconazole or terbinafine may be applicable. Due to frequent scratching, sometimes one might suffer from a bacterial infection and antibiotics are prescribed at this stage. Athlete’s foot may also lead to further complications such as cellulitis due to bacterial skin infections and lymphangitis (PubMed Health, 2011).

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With an objective to evaluate the sensitivity and specificity of KOH smear and fungal culture in diagnoses of tinea pedis, Levitt et al., (2010) performed a pool analysis of data from five similarly conducted antifungal trials. They obtained data from 460 patients with tinea pedis and fungal cultures analyzed 6 weeks after study initiation to determine KOH specificity and sensitivity. They observed that KOH smear and fungal cultures to be complementary diagnostic tests for tinea pedis.

Tinea pedis and onchomycosis leads to foot ulcers to diabetic patients making them more susceptible to bacterial infections which may lead to ultimate amputation of ...

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