Symptoms and treatment of foot fungus.

A fungal infection most often affects the toes or nails. This disease affects adults and children. To prevent the pathology from becoming chronic, it is necessary to know the signs of foot fungus and what this disease looks like.

Main signs of the disease.

Among all skin diseases, foot mycosis is the most common. You can become infected with the disease if you ignore basic hygiene rules. Sometimes it is very difficult to cure fungus.

For each person, foot fungus begins and develops in its own way. These are the most common signs by which you can recognize foot fungus:

• characteristic cracks appear between the toes;
• You can tell that a fungus has appeared by the characteristic itching on the feet and between the toes;
• the skin on the feet is very dry, often flakes and becomes rough;
• blisters appear between the fingers, which burst when destroyed;
• the infection can spread to neighboring areas;
• Reddish spots appear on the skin, causing significant discomfort;
• Foot fungus can also be recognized by its unpleasant odor.

When the first symptoms of the disease appear, it is advisable to immediately consult a dermatologist. If you don't do this ahead of time, it will be much more difficult to treat the fungus.

Signs of fungus depending on the type of pathogen.

This disease develops due to different types of pathogens. The symptoms of foot damage will be different in each case.

1. If foot fungus develops, the nail gradually becomes thinner and detaches from the bed. The skin of the foot is hyperemic (acquires a red tint).
2. With the development of epidermophytes, the nail turns yellow and becomes covered with spots. The skin on the feet peels off and gives off an unpleasant odor. A characteristic symptom of this type of fungus is increased dryness of the skin.
3. When mold appears, the nail plate can suddenly change color. The skin turns red if the pathogen gradually spreads to the entire foot. A person is bothered by the itching and the skin may crack. In this case, pain and other unpleasant sensations appear when walking.

Only a doctor can determine the type of pathogen. This cannot be done at home. And if you practice self-medication, you can only harm yourself. Your legs will suffer from this and the skin fungus will spread more and more.

Signs of some forms of fungi

Depending on the affected area and the degree of development, several forms of pathology are distinguished. Everyone's symptoms are different. Knowing the first signs of foot disease, you can start treatment of mycosis in a timely manner.

1. Interdigital dermatophytosis is the most common stage of the disease. It becomes more active in spring and summer, when feet sweat more. Cracks and sores appear between the fingers. You may notice the presence of scales on their skin. The foot appears absolutely healthy. Often a person feels itchy.
2. The erased form appears at the least pronounced extent. The peeling is noticeable between the fingers. At this stage of the disease, a strong unpleasant odor spreads from the feet: it appears due to increased bacterial activity.

The disease can present itself in various forms. Let's know its signs so that we can identify foot fungus and, if it develops, begin treatment. It must be remembered that in advanced stages of the disease the nail is completely destroyed. It is almost impossible to restore it.

scaly type

This fungus is characterized by intense peeling of the epidermis. In addition, it is the areas of skin between the toes and the side of the foot that are most intensely affected. There are no signs of the inflammatory process. In the photo of the first signs of foot fungus, areas of hyperemia are noted. The scaly mushroom looks like this:

• the stratum corneum thickens;
• the skin shines, sometimes becomes thick;
• the pattern on the skin becomes more distinct;
• the fungus gradually spreads to the fingers, the entire foot and affects the nails;
• sometimes lamellar scales appear on the epidermis;
• The patient does not feel other unpleasant sensations.

Dyshidrotic type

With this fungus, small blisters filled with fluid appear on the skin. They are usually found on the side of the foot. They then gradually move to the inside of the fingers. How to recognize foot fungus of the Dyshidrotic type:

• the bubble is usually single, but if there are many, they merge into one large one;
• If left untreated, the fluid in the blisters gradually darkens;
• If the blister breaks, an erosion with a scab appears in its place.

With this type of foot fungus, there is a very high risk of bacterial infection. The infection enters the body through open skin lesions.

intertriginous type

This type of fungus is the most common. At first, the person does not feel any symptoms. To some extent, the skin on your toes does not change. Later, cracks and layers appear. The skin is not affected, but may sweat.

Candidiasis of the feet

The characteristic symptoms of this fungal infection are the following:

• the injury is the third or fourth finger;
• the skin is red and swollen;
• There is a bubble around the lesion where there is a layer of peeling skin;
• There are pustules and blisters nearby.

If a bacterial infection enters the affected area, it causes an increase in local temperature. Swelling is noted in the skin of the legs. In severe cases, a person experiences generalized hyperthermia.

Signs of fungal nail infection

A person's toenails may also be affected. The disease can be distinguished by the following symptoms.

1. Marked change in the color of the nail plate. Depending on the type of pathology the patient has, the nail acquires a variety of shades. Sometimes it can change only in part of the nail plate.
2. Nails crumble. It only occurs in advanced stages. If the nail is completely infected, it is destroyed.
3. Changes in the structure of the nail.

There are several types of onychomycosis, a fungal nail infection.

1. Atrophic appearance. The nail plate appears very thin. It darkens, sometimes acquiring a grayish brown color. The nail gradually detaches from its bed. The skin underneath becomes keratinized and loosens.
2. With the normotrophic form of foot fungus, the plaque changes its shade. Spots appear: white, yellow, green and even black. The nail structure is not affected.
3. In the hypertrophic form, the plaque gradually thickens and becomes porous. The affected area has a very unpleasant appearance and in some cases causes pain when walking. On the sides it crumbles and collapses without treatment.

Some types of onychomycosis

Depending on the degree of spread of the disease, its forms are distinguished.

1. Lateral onychomycosis is the most common. First, a small yellow spot appears on the free edge of the nail. In the future, you will notice how it increases and the nail plate thickens. When walking, a person feels discomfort. The spread of an unpleasant odor is noted. Lateral onychomycosis is difficult to treat.
2. Superficial onychomycosis is characterized by damage only to the upper layers of plaque. It doesn't thicken, but over time it becomes chalky.
3. The rarest form of the disease is subungual onychomycosis. The skin thickens noticeably in the nail fold. The nail turns white and loses its transparency.

General principles of treatment.

Any pathology treatment begins with diagnosis. Only then can an appropriate remedy be prescribed. Self-medication usually causes a worsening of the condition of the legs. Let's get acquainted with the most common therapy methods.

1. At the first signs of fungal infection, special varnishes, plasters, ointments and sprays are used. They should be used for a long time and according to instructions.
2. If local therapy is not effective, complex antifungal drugs are prescribed. They are used orally.
3. Surgical removal of the affected nail.
4. Laser therapy.
5. In advanced forms of the disease, systemic medications are prescribed.

You can avoid the appearance of an unpleasant disease by following hygiene rules. The use of other people's personal hygiene products (towels, slippers) should be avoided. When the first signs of the disease appear, you should immediately consult a doctor.

Types of mycoses

Fungal infections of the feet usually appear between the toes. It is caused by several types of fungi. This problem is usually inherent to adults, since children's sweat can dismantle the fungus.

Fungal lesions can be of several types:

• candidiasis - occurs when the body's resistance decreases, most often in women;
• epidermophytosis is an exclusively "male" disease that develops due to excessive sweating;
• Rubromycosis is a highly contagious form that can occur even in young children.

Signs and forms of the disease.

Signs of fungal infection may vary depending on the patient's age, the state of the immune system and the nature of blood circulation.

In a person with a strong immune system, the fungus can remain on the skin for several months without manifesting itself. Slight itching and slight redness of the skin may occur.

Treatment and best remedies.

Advanced mycosis is treated with fungicidal tablets and antifungal ointments. The latter are used after washing and drying the feet.

It is recommended to use folk remedies only at the initial stage of the disease, as well as to relieve itching. They should be used with extreme caution as some rely on cauterization of the skin and can cause burns.

As for traditional medicine, they are used at the patient's own risk and expense. Particular care should be taken when using formulations containing vinegar, celandine or manganese, as they can cause skin burns.

In parallel with the drug treatment, baths with oak bark, chamomile or sage can be used. A soda bath effectively reduces itching.

Precautionary measures

Although there are effective and affordable treatments for foot fungus on the market, it is best not to let the problem develop. Prevention of fungal infection consists of:

• in daily hygiene;
• wear individual footwear (especially in showers, bathrooms, and public pools);
• regularly treat the inside of shoes with ammonia;
• daily change of socks;
• strengthen and maintain immunity.

These are basic and simple measures that anyone can take. But if an infection still occurs, to prevent a relapse, it is necessary to treat foot fungus with medications for another 14 days after the complete disappearance of all symptoms of mycosis.

Foot fungus: symptoms and treatment, photo of foot fungus.

Foot fungus is one of the most common diseases in dermatological practice. It occurs mainly in cultures where it is customary to wear shoes most of the time and affects up to 70% of the adult population.

Most often, foot fungus is observed in elderly people, as well as in those whose immunity is significantly weakened, for example, with diabetes, AIDS, circulatory disorders of the lower extremities and other diseases of this type.

Often, the term "foot fungus" refers to the damage caused by the mycelium of the fungus to the plantar skin of the feet, nails, and interdigital spaces.

Pathogens

Among the numerous types of fungi, the main causative agents of foot mycosis are the following:

• Trichophyton rubrum,
• Trichophyton mentagrophytes,
• Epidermophyton floccosum.

Other causative agents of foot fungus infections, which are not as common:

• Trichophyton tonsurans is the causative agent of mycosis in children in America,
• candid,
• Scytalidium hyalinum,
• Scytalidium dimidiatum.

All pathogens of fungal infections have adapted to parasitize in the stratum corneum of the skin, producing special enzymes that break down keratin. In addition, their membranes (cell walls) contain mannans - special substances that suppress local immunity and contribute to the development of chronic inflammation.

Routes of infection and factors that contribute to the disease.

It is believed that some types of fungal foot pathogens are able to maintain viability in exfoliated skin flakes for up to a year. To become infected with a fungus, it is enough for such skin scales with the pathogen to adhere to the legs and then fall into conditions suitable for reproduction: humidity and heat.

The most common foot fungal infections occur:

1. In public places: baths, sun loungers, swimming pools, saunas, even just beach sand.
2. In the family: shared shoes at home, lack of individual foot towels, low level of hygiene.
3. Habits: exchanging shoes, socks, wearing other people's shoes (for example, hosts' slippers during the visit).

Factors that contribute to infection:

1. Decrease in local protective forces as a result of circulatory disorders (for example, with vasculitis, atherosclerosis obliterans of the lower extremities), certain chronic diseases (HIV, other immunodeficiency states, diabetes mellitus, etc. ).
2. Prolonged sweating of the feet in athletes during prolonged training, in summer with closed or poorly ventilated shoes.
3. Cracks and macerations in the skin of the feet.

In general, men get sick more often than women; With age, the frequency of foot fungal infections increases. The risk group for foot fungal infections are:

• miners,
• military personnel,
• bathroom attendants,
• regular customers of baths and saunas,
• Athletes.

types of disease

Depending on the location of the pathological focus of the skin of the foot affected by the fungus:

1. Interdigital mycosis (dermatophytosis). It is most commonly seen in chronic (squamous) or acute (intertriginous) form.
2. Plantar mycoses. Very often it manifests itself as peeling and keratinization of the skin of the foot.
3. Dyshidrotic dermatophytosis. Bubbles and vesicles form on the skin of the foot, often reminiscent of allergic dermatitis.
4. Deep mycosis. In this case, not only the superficial but also the deep layers of the skin are affected.
5. Onychomycosis. Toenail fungal infection.

Depending on the type of pathogen, the main fungal diseases of the feet are:

1. Athlete's disease caused by Trichophyton mcntagrophytes.
2. Rubrophytosis, caused by Trichophyton rubrum.

Rubrophytosis of the feet: main types and symptoms.

Rubrophytosis is the most common fungal disease of the foot. It occurs in almost 70-90% of cases.

Symptoms

The classic form of rubrophytosis is characterized by redness and moderate thickening (lichenification) of the skin. The affected skin is shiny, with a raised pattern, a dry surface with mealy scales accumulated in the area of furrows and folds.

The disease usually begins with the third or fourth interdigital fold, which is the narrowest. The fungus then spreads to other spaces between the toes, the sole, and the back of the foot.

The following forms are characteristic of rubrophytia:

Frequently found:

• scaly form (the main symptom is scaly skin),
• keratinizing form: the presence of "calluses", thickening.
• intertriginous (opreloid),
• Dyshidrotic (with blistering),
• mixed form (diaper rash, blisters).

On the foot

Erased squamous rubrophytia has the least pronounced symptoms and goes almost unnoticed by the patient. Its main symptoms:

1. Interdigital spaces: peeling, presence of mealy scales, small superficial cracks.
2. There are practically no complaints or a slight itch may bother you.

In this way, rubrophytosis can last for a long time. However, the progression of the disease is observed gradually, leading to the appearance of hyperkeratotic and mixed forms. Little by little they appear:

• increased dryness of the skin of the feet,
• skin roughness,
• the appearance of rough calluses on the sole and lateral areas of the foot,
• Formation of deep and painful cracks in the heel area.

With rubrophytosis of the feet, 3 main types of peeling of the skin are observed:

1. Floury.The natural folds and grooves of the skin look like they have been dusted with flour.
2. Ring shaped. Red spots with a border of exfoliated epithelium.
3. large laminar. In this case, the skin peels off in large plaques.

In the interdigital spaces

During intense sweating of the feet, wearing poorly ventilated shoes or improper treatment, the spaces between the toes periodically begin to get wet. The skin swells, erodes and cracks deeply. The main complaints of patients at this stage are itching, pain and burning.

Without timely and effective treatment, the process progressively worsens, which is manifested by increased pain and itching, which intensifies with movement. Large blisters appear on the skin of the interdigital spaces and the lateral surfaces of the fingers, which then turn into erosions, surrounded by a border of whitish epidermis.

in the nails

Nail plates of the toes with rubrophytosis:

• thickened,
• falling apart,
• yellowish gray or with a brown tint,
• Chiseled white spots that later spread throughout the nail.

They sometimes separate from the nail bed, thicken, and take on the appearance of a bird's claw or ingrown toenail, causing additional discomfort to patients.

Complications of rubrophytosis.

As a rule, rubrophytia spreads to other parts of the body: hands, soft skin, hair. The pathogen enters new areas of the skin lymphogenously, as well as by contact (for example, transferred by hands when washing feet).

1. Hands: damage to palms and nails.
2. Smooth skin: lesions on the face, inguinal-femoral folds, buttocks, legs.

In this case, mycosis manifests itself as round pinkish-red or pinkish spots with a tendency to merge and grow peripherally. Its surface is covered with scales and along the edges there is an inflammatory ridge with small bubbles and crusts.

If the rubrophytia has spread to large folds, itching occurs.

Athlete's foot: types and symptoms

Athlete's foot occurs much less frequently than rubrophytosis and presents the same forms of the disease:

1. Erased.
2. keratinizing.
3. Diaper rash.
4. With bubble formation.
5. Athlete nails.

Next, thickenings in the form of bluish-red skin plates appear on the lateral surfaces and on the sole of the foot. In the center of the rash there are layers of scales, the boundaries of the lesions are clear. In the spaces between the fingers, the epidermis takes on a whitish tint.

With athlete's foot, patients are bothered by itching, increased dryness and pain of the skin.

The opreloid (intertriginous) form of epidermophytosis is characterized by redness, swelling and maceration of the interdigital folds. Cracks often form and pain is felt.

When the pathogen affects the arch of the foot, a Dyshidrotic form can often be observed with the formation of blisters that, once opened, look like pink or red moist erosions.

Athlete's foot occurs most often in the big toe (I) and little toe (V). In the thickness of the nail, closer to the free edge, yellowish spots and stripes form, which gradually increase and occupy the entire nail. The nail then begins to crumble and sometimes detaches from the nail bed.

Podvysotskaya acute epidermophytosis

The main symptoms of this form of athlete's foot:

• swelling of the feet, fingers,
• abundance of vesicles,
• weeping erosions,
• maceration of interdigital folds,
• enlarged inguinal lymph nodes,
• increased body temperature,
• headache,
• difficulty walking due to pain,
• General weakness.

Onychomycosis of the toes: symptoms and types.

In addition to the causative agents of rubrophytosis and epidermophytosis, onychomycosis can be caused by yeast fungi of the genus Candida, as well as some other fungi.

The most typical symptoms of onychomycosis, which begin closer to the free edge of the nail:

• discoloration, loss of natural shine,
• thickening of the nail plate,
• the appearance of subungual hyperkeratosis,
• destruction of the nail, detachment of the nail bed.

With onychomycosis, there are 2 main types of damage to the nails:

1. Normotrophic: white and yellowish stripes are seen in the thickness of the nail.
2. Atrophic: thinning, destruction of the nail plate, its detachment.

Diagnosis of fungal infections of the feet.

A specialist in the treatment of fungal infections of the feet is a dermatologist who, if necessary, can involve other specialists in the treatment.

After talking with the patient, clarifying the complaints and features of the onset and course of the disease, the doctor will examine the affected surface and prescribe some types of additional examinations, for example:

1. Microscopic examination with additional treatment of the material with potassium hydroxide.
2. Examination with Wood's lamp.
3. Inoculation of suspicious biological material into special media for fungal growth, as well as media for bacteria.

Treatment

Treatment for any foot fungus infection must be prescribed by a doctor to achieve a complete cure.

In general, the treatment of foot mycoses is based on the following therapeutic principles:

1. Fighting the infectious agent. In the initial stages of the disease, local medications are usually prescribed: antifungal ointments, creams and lotions. In severe cases, use systemic antifungal agents.
2. Increase immunity and improve local blood circulation, treating the underlying disease.
3. Desensitizing therapy. Since mycosis of the feet is often accompanied by allergic reactions, anti-allergy drugs are accordingly prescribed that will help improve the patient's condition.

Home treatment

• To effectively treat foot mycosis, it is necessary to remember that fungi multiply in a humid environment. By excluding moisture, fungus will not develop and the chances of healing will increase.
• Protect your family members from fungal diseases. You must explain to them that from now on you will not be able to walk barefoot around the apartment, especially in the bathroom or shower. After bathing or showering, it is necessary to treat the bath, tray and floor with a disinfectant.
• Wash your feet every day with soap, picking up all the fallen pieces of skin with a napkin so that nothing gets under your nails.
• After washing your feet, be sure to dry the spaces between your toes with toilet paper or a hair dryer, and then apply an antifungal agent prescribed by your doctor. Treatment should continue for several months even in cases where the manifestations of mycosis completely disappear.
• Use talcum powder while wearing shoes.
• Wear white cotton socks (clean every day). Used socks should be boiled or soaked in disinfectant for 10 minutes. Shoes should be disinfected with antifungal sprays.

Prevention of mycosis of the feet.

Timely treatment of diseases that can reduce the body's defenses or alter blood circulation.

Conclusion

Foot fungus is one of the most common fungal skin infections. In most cases, following simple prevention rules helps to avoid the disease, and timely treatment begins to completely eliminate mycosis.