CME

Continuing Medical Education

Tinea Capitis: Current Concepts in Clinical Practice

Trovato MJ, Schwartz RA, Janniger CK

Cutis. 2006;77:93-99.

Tinea capitis is a common infection, particularly among young children in urban regions. The infection often is seen in a form with mild scaling and little hair loss, a result of the prominence of Trichophyton tonsurans (the most frequent cause of tinea capitis in the United States). T tonsurans does not fluoresce under Wood light, unlike the common tinea capitis–causing fungal organisms seen in Europe and many other countries, which emit a green fluorescence. However, T tonsurans, like other fungi, also may less often produce an intense inflammatory reaction, which is suggestive of an acute bacterial infection.

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