What is the difference between tinea versicolor and ringworm

Ringworm is a common infection of the skin and nails that is caused by fungus. Approximately 40 different species of fungi can cause ringworm; the scientific names for the types of fungi that cause ringworm are Trichophyton, Microsporum , and Epidermophyton. Skip directly to site content Skip directly to page options Skip directly to A-Z link.

Fungal Diseases. In: Habif P, ed. Clinical dermatology: a color guide to diagnosis and therapy. Louis: Mosby, — Cohn MS. Topical and oral treatment of common types. Postgrad Med. Treatment and prophylaxis of tinea infections. Aly R. Ecology and epidemiology of dermatophyte infections. J Am Acad Dermatol. Habif TP. Guidelines of care for superficial mycotic infections of the skin: tinea corporis, tinea cruris, tinea faciei, tinea manuum, and tinea pedis.

Hay R. Dermatophytosis and other superficial mycoses. Mandell, Douglas, and Bennett's Principles and practice of infectious diseases. New York: Churchill Livingstone, — Superficial tinea infections.

Am Fam Physician. Fungal skin infections. Patient Care. Itraconazole versus griseofulvin in the treatment of tinea capitis: a double-blind randomized study in children. Int J Dermatol. A randomized double-blind comparative study of terbinafine for 1, 2 and 4 weeks in tinea capitis.

Br J Dermatol. Elewski BE. Cutaneous mycoses in children. Voravutinon V. Oral treatment of tinea corporis and tinea cruris with terbinafine and griseofulvin: a randomized double blind comparative study. J Med Assoc Thai. Double-blind comparison of itraconazole and placebo in the treatment of tinea corporis and tinea cruris. Clin Exp Dermatol. Montero-Gei F, Perera A. Therapy with fluconazole for tinea corporis, tinea cruris, and tinea pedis.

Clin Infect Dis. Wishart JM. A double blind study of itraconazole vs. Elewski B, Hay RJ. International summit on cutaneous antifungal therapy. Package insert. Janssen Pharmaceutica Inc. Sandoz Pharmaceuticals Corporation, Physicians' desk reference.

Montvale, N. Antifungal pulse therapy for onychomycosis. A pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic investigation of monthly cycles of 1-week pulse therapy with itraconazole. Arch Dermatol. Pulse therapy with one-week itraconazole monthly for three or four months in the treatment of onychomycosis. Treatment of dermatophyte nail infections: an open randomized study comparing intermittent terbinafine therapy with continuous terbinafine treatment and intermittent itraconazole therapy.

Nahass GT, Sisto M. Onychomycosis: successful treatment with once-weekly fluconazole. An evaluation of the safety and efficacy of fluconazole in the treatment of onychomycosis. South Med J. Coldiron B. Recalcitrant onychomycosis of the toe-nails successfully treated with fluconazole. Diehl KB. Red book. Elewski B. Tinea capitis. Dermatol Clin. Treatment of tinea unguium with medium and high doses of ultramicrosize griseofulvin compared with itraconazole.

Antimicrob Agents Chemother. Treatment of tinea capitis. Ann Pharmacother. Antifungal agents: an overview. Part II. Effects of an acidic beverage Coca-Cola on absorption of ketoconazole. Allen J. Itraconazole and ketoconazole absorption in achlorhydria. Prescriber's Lett. Pfizer Inc. Is tinea unguium still widely incurable? A review three decades after the introduction of griseofulvin. The scraping should be taken with a 15 scalpel blade or the edge of a glass slide.

The scraped scale should fall onto a microscope slide or into a test tube. False-negative KOH preparations often result from inadequate scrapings. A tinea capitis sample for KOH preparation can be taken by scraping the black dots hairs broken off at the skin line. For suspected onychomycosis, consider a periodic acid—Schiff stain of nail clippings instead of KOH preparation.

Because the scrapings will easily blow off the slide, shield it from drafts or apply KOH preparation to the slide before transport. Alternatively, place a coverslip over the dry scrapings and a drop or two of KOH next to the coverslip and allow it to run under the coverslip. KOH dissolves squamous cells but leaves the fungal elements intact. Heat the slide with a match or alcohol lamp. The match may leave a smoky deposit on the slide. Avoid boiling the KOH, but the slide should be hot enough to be uncomfortable to the dorsum of the hand, usually three to four seconds over the flame.

Skin scrapings and hair can be examined under the microscope immediately. Toenail curettings should wait at least 10 minutes to several hours before examination. After heating the slide, tap down the coverslip to compress the sample and separate the hyphae from the squamous cells.

Adjust the light filter and drop the condenser to achieve a low light level and increased refraction. Scan the slide under low power, and use high power to confirm hyphae in suspicious areas. False-negative results on KOH preparations are common and are usually caused by inadequate material on the slide. False-positive results can occur from misinterpretation of hair shafts or clothing fibers, which are often larger than hyphae, not segmented, and not branching.

The borders between squamous cells can also be mistaken for hyphae. The shelf life of a bottle of KOH is at least five years. KOH can damage microscope lenses. Therefore, use an old microscope, and avoid spills and excess KOH on the slide. Information from Kelly BP. Superficial fungal infections. Pediatr Rev. These considerations may warrant antifungal treatment in the absence of hyphae under the microscope.

Visual inspection KOH preparation 41 , Culture 10 , 11 , KOH preparation 10 , 11 , KOH preparation 30 , 44 — KOH preparation Calcofluor stain. Culture Periodic acid—Schiff stain Accessed January 10, Diagnostic standard is considered negative if both culture and periodic acid—Schiff stain are negative.

Information from references 10 , 11 , 29 , 30 , and 41 through Don't prescribe oral antifungal therapy for suspected nail fungus without confirmation of fungal infection. Finally, we performed multiple targeted searches in PubMed and reference lists of previously retrieved studies to fill in remaining information gaps, such as the performance characteristics of laboratory tests used to diagnose fungal infections.

Search dates: October 16, , through July 16, Already a member or subscriber? Log in. Interested in AAFP membership? Learn more. Address correspondence to John W. Reprints are not available from the authors. Primary care physicians' errors in handling cutaneous disorders. A prospective survey. J Am Acad Dermatol. Kelly BP. Incidence of cutaneous lupus erythematosus, — a population-based study.

Arch Dermatol. The diagnosis and management of tinea. Athlete's foot, ringworm of the feet. Elk Grove Village, Ill. Accessed February 26, Tinea corporis, ringworm of the body. Accessed December 12, Hubbard TW. The predictive value of symptoms in diagnosing childhood tinea capitis. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. Tinea capitis: predictive value of symptoms and time to cure with griseofulvin treatment.

Clin Pediatr Phila. Prevalence of scalp scaling in prepubertal children. Epidemiology and treatment of tinea capitis: ketoconazole vs. Pediatr Infect Dis J. Randomized controlled trial of intra-lesional corticosteroid and griseofulvin vs. The assessment and management of tinea capitis in children. Pediatr Emerg Care. Pediatr Dermatol. A random comparative study of terbinafine versus griseofulvin in patients with tinea capitis in Western China. Terbinafine hydrochloride oral granules versus oral griseofulvin suspension in children with tinea capitis: results of two randomized, investigator-blinded, multicenter, international, controlled trials.

Systemic antifungal therapy for tinea capitis in children. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. Tinea capitis, ringworm of the scalp. Therapeutic options for the treatment of tinea capitis caused by Trichophyton species: griseofulvin versus the new oral antifungal agents, terbinafine, itraconazole, and fluconazole. Cumulative meta-analysis of systemic antifungal agents for the treatment of onychomycosis. Br J Dermatol. Gupta A, Simpson F.

Device-based therapies for onychomycosis treatment. Skin Therapy Lett. Meta-analysis of randomized, controlled trials comparing griseofulvin and terbinafine in the treatment of tinea capitis. Epidemiologic surveillance of cutaneous fungal infection in the United States from to Childhood nail diseases.

Dermatol Clin. Clinical practice. Fungal nail disease. N Engl J Med. Allevato MA. Diseases mimicking onychomycosis. Clin Dermatol. American Academy of Dermatology. This content does not have an English version.

This content does not have an Arabic version. Overview Tinea versicolor Open pop-up dialog box Close. Tinea versicolor The overgrowth of fungus that causes tinea versicolor interferes with the normal pigment production of the skin.

Request an Appointment at Mayo Clinic. Share on: Facebook Twitter. Show references Ferri FF. Tinea versicolor. In: Ferri's Clinical Advisor Philadelphia, Pa.