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CHILDREN’S HEALTH: RINGWORM
Symptom
Scaly, red rash
Home care
Apply a nonprescription antifungal ointment to the infected area until the skin is clear. If you do not know which preparation to use, ask your doctor.
Precautions
- If a rash does not improve with home treatment, see the doctor. The rash may not be ringworm at all.
- If home treatment seems to make the rash worse, discontinue treatment and see the doctor. The child’s skin may be sensitive to the medication you’re using.
Ringworm is actually a skin infection caused by a fungus. Ringworm spreads by direct contact with an infected person or pet animal, or by indirect contact with contaminated objects such as combs, pillows, towels, clothing, even the floor.
Different funguses prefer different areas of the body. Ringworm of the scalp (tinea capitis) appears as scaly patches with stubs of broken-off hairs on the scalp. Ringworm of the body (tinea corporis) shows up as round or oval red, scaly patches that enlarge while healing proceeds from the center. Ringworm of the groin (tinea cruris) is characterized by a red or brown scaly rash on the crotch and the genital area and has a sharply defined margin of spread. Ringworm of the feet (athlete’s foot, or tinea pedis) affects the feet and sometimes the ankles and legs. The diagnosis of ringworm is based on your child’s history and close inspection of the rash. The diagnosis is confirmed by laboratory tests.
Home care
Antifungal ointments such as haloprogin, chlortrimazole, tolnaftate, and undecylenic acid ointments can be applied to the infected area until the skin clears.
Precautions
• Several other common rashes resemble ringworm. If a rash does not improve after several days of home treatment see your doctor.
• The preparations used to treat ringworm may cause another rash on sensitive skin. If the rash worsens or changes in any way, stop home treatment and see your doctor.
Medical treatment
Your doctor can confirm a home diagnosis of ringworm by examining your child’s rash under ultraviolet light, and by culturing a skin scraping and examining the results under the microscope. The doctor may prescribe an antifungal ointment to be applied to the skin, or a medication such as griseofulvin fungicide for the child to take by mouth.
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