Introduction to Fungal Infection

Dermatophyte infections are general worldwide, and dermatophytes are the common problems of fungal infection of the skin, hair, and nails. These infections begin to various clinical manifestations, such as tinea pedis, tinea corporis, tinea cruris. Tinea is also known as ringworm. The clinical features, diagnosis, therapy, and treatments of the skin’s Fungal infections will be reviewed here. Dermatophyte infections of scalp hair (tinea capitis), beard hair (tinea barbae), and nails (tinea unguium) are discussed in detail separately..

Treatment Principles

Dermatophytes are filamentous fungi in the species Trichophyton, Microsporum, and Epidermophyton. Dermatophytes metabolize and subsist upon keratin in the skin, hair, and nails. The primary clinical subtypes of Fungal infections are:

• Tinea corporis – Infection of body, surfaces other than the feet, groin, face, scalp hair, or beard hair.
• Tinea pedis – Infection of the foot
• Tinea cruris – Infection of the groin
• Tinea capitis – Infection of scalp hair
• Tinea unguium (dermatophyte onychomycosis) – Infection of the nail