Tinea faciei is an extremely common form of dermatophytosis or superficial fungal infection. Dermatophytosis is caused by one of three genera: Trichophyton, Epidermophyton, or Microsporum. These fungi ...

Understanding the Context

Dermatophytosis, or tinea, is a fungal infection involving superficial portions of the skin, hair and nails. The infection is usually caused by one of three genera: Epidermophyton, Microsporum or ... Usually when people hear about ring worm infection, they assume that it is caused by a worm or parasite. However in reality, this highly infectious disease (also known as tinea) is caused by a ...

Key Insights

Ringworm goes by different names depending on which body part it affects. Ringworm on your body is called tinea corporis. This type of ringworm affects your arms, legs, torso and face. Ringworm is treated with antifungal medication available either over the counter or as a prescription. But it most often occurs on the feet, groin, nails, body, and scalp.

Final Thoughts

Treatment depends on what part of the body is infected. It may include antifungal cream, shampoo, or medicine by mouth. Some types of tinea infection can be prevented if you don't share personal hygiene products, clothing, or shoes and keep your skin dry. Athlete's foot (also known as "ringworm of the foot", [2] tinea pedum, [3] and "moccasin foot" [4]) is a common and contagious skin disease that causes itching, scaling, flaking, and sometimes blistering of the affected areas. Tinea amiantacea (usually referred to as pityriasis amiantacea) - this is a scalp condition that is usually due to either psoriasis or severe seborrhoeic dermatitis. Tinea of the scalp, tinea capitis, is also common.

The medical term for each type of ringworm starts with 'tinea' followed by the Latin name for the part of the body infected.