Following the first-ever report of a sexually transmitted ringworm in the United States, medical professionals are alerting physicians and the general public to a highly contagious uncommon fungus strain.
Lead study author and dermatologist Avrom Caplan of New York University Grossman School of Medicine stated in a university news release that “healthcare providers should be aware that Trichophyton mentagrophytes type VII is the latest in a group of severe skin infections to have now reached the United States.”
As per the Centers for Disease Control, Trichophyton mentagrophytes type VII is a fungus that is spread through sexual contact.
The first instance included a man in his 30s from New York City who reported having intercourse with men while traveling to England and Greece and California.
He then had (tinea) ringworm on his genitalia, buttocks, and extremities, according to a new JAMA Dermatology paper published on Wednesday.
According to the case study, the man had an itchy red rash on his genitalia, buttocks, and groin when he got back home. Tests revealed that he had indeed contracted the unusual fungus.
What is type VII Trichophyton mentagrophytes?
The CDC states that sexual contact is the means of acquiring Trichophyton mentagrophytes type VII, a drug-resistant fungus that causes skin illness in both people and animals.
The CDC reports incidences of it in males who had sex with men and in travelers who developed genital ringworm after visiting Southeast Asia. incidences have been identified all over the world.
The rash may resemble an exacerbation of eczema rather than the typical circular pattern of ringworm infection, according to Caplan’s research. Although the infection is not deadly, the dermatologist noted that it may leave behind lifelong scars.
According to Caplan, he was the one who last year discovered the first two cases of an unrelated ringworm infection. The doctor stated that those infections—caused by Trichophyton indotineae—are communicable and resistant to medication, but they are not STIs.
Since then, 11 cases of Trichophyton indotineaeringworm in residents of New York City have been reported by Caplan’s NYU Langone Health team.
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As of May, a study in the same journal, 11 instances of ringworm in New York caused by Trichophyton indotinea have been connected to travel to Asia. Medical experts stated that those patients are not responding to typical treatments, such as first-line antifungals.
The Mayo Clinic states that terbinafine is a prescription medication used to treat athlete’s foot, jock itch, fingernails, toenails, and fungal infections of the scalp and body.
Trichophyton mentagrophytes type VII symptoms
- Severe itching
- Inflammatory circular skin patterns
- Problems with nails and hair
- Causes athlete’s foot
