Fungal disease is a fairly common phenomenon. But not everyone understands exactly how such problems should be handled. Often people buy medicine at pharmacies recommended by "neighbors" or try traditional medicine. Some people who use this treatment suffer with their problem for many years.
But to defeat the fungus effectively and quickly, you need to consult a specialist and choose the appropriate drug therapy. After completing the necessary tests, the specialist will be able to prescribe a drug that will help correct the hated problem. Typically, eradication of the fungus requires procedural local treatment, in which the affected tissue is cleaned and the source of infection is neutralized. The most important thing to know is that independent treatments are not effective. Let's figure out exactly how to choose the right treatment.
This article is not a guide for you to choose a medication yourself, but only to help you better understand the basis for the decision of the attending dermatologist. All situations are individual and it is easy to overlook contraindications and important nuances of the course of the disease, which the doctor will certainly pay attention to and take into account when choosing antifungal therapy andtreatment time.
What is fungus or fungal disease?
Fungal diseases, commonly known as fungi, are a series of highly contagious infectious diseases.
- Pathogens: parasitic fungi of all types (pathogenic and opportunistic).
- Affected areas: skin, nails, hair, mucous membranes.
- Recurrence: very likely.
Where you might encounter it: public places like bathrooms, showers, gyms, swimming pools, beaches, etc. v.
How does infection occur: through contact with mucous membranes, small cracks in the skin.
This disease is very contagious. It is almost impossible to fully recover on your own. Mycoses are most dangerous for people with reduced immunity, when their general condition is worse than usual. A doctor's help and the right choice of antifungal medication can solve the problem.
You can get infected from someone else's cat or by contact with objects that have fungal spores on them. But not all types of fungal infections cause illness. There are also species that are constantly present in the body and in some cases they are even helpful (for example, Candida). But if the fungus becomes more aggressive, treatment may be needed.
Causes of fungal diseases
A healthy person with good immunity usually does not get sick from fungi. If everything is fine with the immune system, then it can easily cope with such a load and the development of fungi does not occur.
Reduced immunity
If your immune system is weakened, your risk of getting sick increases. If you have recently undergone antibiotic therapy, your immunity is always reduced and caution is needed.
People with immunocompromised conditions, cancer patients, and patients receiving regular cytostatic therapy are at risk.
Using public places is not hygienic
- If a person visits a swimming pool or public bathhouse, he or she must always bring a personal towel and flip-flops.
- The same should be done when going to the gym.
- You should only try on shoes in the store wearing socks.
- It is necessary to ensure that the specialists in the salon do not forget to sterilize the tools.
- You cannot use other people's toiletries.
- Do not wear tight shoes or synthetic underwear.
- If the skin is damaged, you should not forget to use antiseptics because infection occurs through damaged areas.
Chronic diseases
They themselves can reduce immunity and negatively affect the body's resistance. Skin diseases are especially susceptible to problems such as fungal diseases: cracks, calluses. With some diseases, the skin becomes dry and fragile (for diabetics, varicose veins). All skin diseases put a person at risk.
Personality
There may be individual characteristics that create suitable conditions for fungal disease to develop. For example, hyperhidrosis or sweating of the palms and soles of the feet. There are other unique characteristics that create a good environment for many different types of pathogenic fungi.
Types of mushrooms
There is no classification that describes pathogenic fungi. Diseases are often classified according to symptoms and degree of spread. Diseases such as nail fungus, ringworm, and athlete's foot are classified as superficial fungal diseases. The incidence of fungal diseases may vary:
- karatomycosis - when microorganisms are present only in the stratum corneum of the skin;
- dermatosis - if fungal infection penetrates the epidermis, hair follicles and dermis;
- Candida – damage to mucous membranes.
There are also systemic fungi, which are characterized by damage not only to the outer shell, but also to internal organs.
Types of pathogens:
- Yeast is often part of the microbiome.
- Mold has the potential to cause disease.
- Dodmiphorae causes disease.
To accurately determine the cause of infection and then prescribe effective treatment based on special means, it is necessary to conduct a diagnosis. If the integumentary tissue is affected, smearing or scraping will be performed. When problems occur with internal organs, the type of pathogen can be determined by microscopic examination based on blood tests. Several types of infectious lesions have similar clinical signs, and the exact cause can only be determined by analysis.
How to recognize fungal diseases - symptoms
Despite the fact that each type of infection has its own characteristics, manifesting itself at different stages of the disease, superficial mycoses also have common signs of the disease:
- changes in skin color - redness or discoloration;
- the appearance of areas of peeling or continuous oozing;
- itchy;
- shell.
For scalp damage:
- Signs of fungus are often dandruff;
- brittleness and hair loss.
On face:
- the appearance of lesions in the fold of the upper eyelid.
On the feet:
- crack;
- burn;
- balloon;
- Unpleasant odors are more common;
- roughens the skin;
- thickened skin;
- ulcers (if there is also a bacterial infection).
On nails:
- small white dots on the plate;
- Affected nails have white stripes;
- change color to black, yellow, brown;
- structure changes (it becomes class);
- Nails become thicker or thinner;
- nail plates move away from the bed;
- inflamed nail folds;
- changes in the shape or relief of the nails.
At first, the infection develops unnoticed and many people only notice nail fungus in the advanced stages of the disease and not when the condition of the skin and nails can be corrected relatively easily and quickly. If there are the first signs of pathological changes, you should immediately consult a specialist.
Medicines to treat fungus
Medicines that treat fungus are called antifungals, from the words "anti" and mycosis, but often they are simply called antifungals. These drugs are divided into two categories based on their effects:
- sporicidal fungicides - fungicides;
- those that do not stop the growth and stop the growth of a fungal infection but do not kill it are fungicides.
The type of treatment the doctor decides to prescribe is influenced by many different factors, including the characteristics of the patient's body.
The potency of a particular drug varies depending on the following factors:
- dosage of active ingredients;
- spectrum of action of the active ingredient.
Typically, fungus is treated with topical medications such as antifungal ointments. Oral medications (antifungal tablets) are used if the fungus cannot be cured by external use or when the disease is systemic and long-lasting. When the situation is very difficult, injections can even be used to treat the fungus.
Forms of release
Topical antifungals are produced in various forms:
- ointment;
- cream;
- sprays;
- solutions;
- antifungal paint (for nail damage).
If the damage is only external, local treatment is enough. A characteristic feature of these drugs is that they have almost no side effects, unlike drugs taken internally. Complex therapy with the use of systemic anticonvulsants is prescribed for a more complicated course of the disease if the disease relapses. Treatment courses can then be performed. It is not always possible to accurately determine treatment based on clinical presentation, so testing is necessary. Sometimes fungal diseases worsen the course of allergic diseases that the patient may have. In this case, absorbents may be prescribed.
One of the most popular agents for antifungal treatment is fluconazole. It is used for both external and internal lesions. This substance is found in many different medications. Available in tablets, capsules, injections and other forms. To prevent fungus, people use antiseptics on the skin of their feet, palms, and nails. Disease prevention also means timely vitamin supplementation to support the immune system.