What Is Tinea Capitis?

Tinea capitis is a superficial fungal infection of the scalp and hair. It can be divided into yellow ringworm, white ringworm, black ringworm, and psoriasis according to the pathogens and clinical manifestations.

Basic Information

English name

tineacapitis

Visiting department

dermatology

Multiple groups

child

Common symptoms

Yellow ringworm, white ringworm, black ringworm, psoriasis,

Contagious

Have

way for spreading

Direct contact

Causes of tinea capitis

The common pathogenic bacteria in China are Trichophyton xylostella, Microsporum rust, Microsporum canis, Trichophyton purple and Trichophyton punctatus. Tinea capitis is mainly transmitted by direct or indirect contact with patients or diseased animals, especially when the scalp is more likely to be infected due to trauma such as shaving, so haircut is one of the transmission channels. However, it is not always possible to cause tinea capitis after fungal infection, which is closely related to the body's resistance to fungi. Most adults are more resistant to fungi and children are weaker, so tinea capitis is more common in children.

Clinical manifestations of tinea capitis

Yellow ringworm

Commonly known as "alopecia" or "hoe." Symptoms occur in children and adults can also be infected. The typical skin lesion is disk-shaped soybean-shaped yellow ringworm, which has hair penetrating through the center. The scabies are removed, and the bright red wet erosion surface or shallow ulcers are under it. Atrophic scars are formed after healing, leaving permanent alopecia. Scutellaria baicalensis is often prone to secondary bacterial infections, has a special odor, and is consciously itchy. Diseases often appear dry, withered, and curved. Xanthomonas can invade other tissues outside the scalp, causing onychomycosis and body yellowness.

2. Ringworm

Most of them are onset in childhood, and they can heal after puberty; From the beginning, they are white scaly localized patches with dark hair and a slight itching. After gradually expanding, satellite-like small scaly patches can appear around them, which can be fused into a slice, but the boundaries are clear; there is a white sheath-like scabbard at the root of the diseased hair, which easily breaks when it grows about 0.5cm from the scalp; The top of the head is in the middle, but it can also be on the forehead or pillow. This pathogen can invade smooth skin and cause herpes-like, eczema-like, or pityriasis-like damage.

3. Black ringworm

Both children and adults can develop the disease; The skin lesions are mainly white scaly patches, which resemble white ringworm, but the disease does not have obvious myelin sheaths, and the hair is broken along the skin surface with black dots, so it is also called black ringworm; ringworm can also cause tinea corporis and onychomycosis on the smooth skin of the face, etc .; long course, slow progress, can not heal until adulthood, hair follicles can be damaged to form scars. It is often overlooked in women for having long hair.

4. Psoriasis

The last two types of tinea capitis can sometimes be complicated by psoriasis. The hair follicles on the affected area can often be purulent and cause one or several swelling-like swellings caused by the body's allergy to fungi. If you squeeze it hard, you can shed a small amount of slurry Or translucent pus. Local disease is easy to pull out, scars form after healing and permanent hair loss remains in the area.

Tinea capitis diagnosis

The diagnosis of tinea capitis is mainly based on clinical manifestations, direct fungal microscopy, and filtered ultraviolet inspection.

Tinea capitis treatment

Hair removal treatment

(1) Artificial hair removal treatment This method can be considered for those whose area is within 5 cents and the damage is not more than 3 pieces. That is, use flat-tipped tweezers to pull out the hair in the lesion area and the surrounding area within a 3cm width, and then apply 2% iodine tincture once a day for 3 to 4 times. Wash your hair frequently and apply 5% sulfur yellow ointment once a week. If the suppuration is severe, stop using iodine tincture and apply 0.5% furancillin ointment.

(2) X-ray hair loss treatment means that after X-ray irradiation, the hair follicles are temporarily ischemic and easy to remove. It has been used sparingly.

2. Comprehensive treatment of griseofulvin

Including oral flavomycin, shampoo daily, topical 5% sulfur yellow ointment or 2% iodine tincture, hair cut every 1 to 2 weeks. This method is suitable for all types of tinea capitis without contraindications.

3. Other antifungal medications

You can choose to use terbinafine, itraconazole, fluconazole and other drugs.

Tinea capitis prevention

1. Take precautionary measures such as drying, scalding, boiling, and fumigation on patients' contaminated clothing, caps, pillows, and quilts. Contaminated haircutting tools should be brushed, washed, and soaked. Burnt hair, scales, and skins should be incinerated.

2. Enlist the cooperation of veterinarians to prevent and control diseased animals to prevent transmission.

3. The barber should do a good job of isolating and disinfecting the haircut tools, and try not to damage the scalp during the haircut.

4. The school regularly gives children hygiene lessons, and often checks the children's heads, and finds that new patients should be treated immediately to prevent spreading.