Fungal diseases of the skin and nails belong to the group of human infectious diseases caused by pathogenic fungi. Fungal infections (mycoses) are different. There are very severe forms of infections with high mortality. However, not many people suffer from them. Nail fungus is not one of them and it is impossible to die directly from it. But fungal infections of the skin and nails are one of the most common fungal diseases. It is a contagious disease that spreads from person to person.
What does nail fungus look like?
Many people do not pay attention to the changes in the nail plates, very often consider these changes as a consequence of trauma or age characteristics. Fungal diseases of the nails have many different manifestations. But as a rule, changes in the nails with fungal disease have three main manifestations: changes in the color of the nail plate, its thickening, disintegration or destruction.
Fungus or not fungus?
So, you may notice some changes in the skin or nail plates. It remains to be decided whether it is a fungus or not.
There are many non-fungal diseases of the skin and nails - several hundred names. According to statistics, however, every second nail disease is fungal. That is, if your nails change, the chance of having nail fungus is 50%, regardless of any manifestations and factors. But what about skin diseases of the feet? They obey the same laws of probability. That is, most lesions on the skin of the feet are fungal. Remember, untreated fungus on the skin of the feet will sooner or later turn into nail fungus. And it is not so easy to get rid of nail fungus. Make no mistake. If you suspect that you have a skin or nail disease, contact your mycologist!
Despite the fact that most nail changes turn out to be fungal, another nature of these changes must be taken into account. Here it is necessary to emphasize, first of all, chronic trauma to the nails. Changes in the nails can occur in some common skin diseases, internal infectious diseases, lesions of the nervous, endocrine, cardiovascular systems, various types of intoxication, as well as dystrophy. Finally, nail changes can be congenital. These nail changes are outwardly similar to fungal infections, but they are not. Treatment with antifungal drugs for non-fungal nail diseases, of course, will not be successful. This is another reason to consult a mycologist and not try to cure nail changes.
Can you recognize nail fungus yourself?
No, you can't! And no professional doctor, no matter how experienced, will treat a fungal disease without confirming the diagnosis in the laboratory, even with the most typical signs of foot fungus. Laboratory confirmation is a prerequisite for any fungal disease. Simply put, if the laboratory finds a fungus in the skin flakes or a piece of nail taken for analysis, it is a fungal disease.
Dilemma: to treat or not to treat fungus?
Some people doubt whether it is worth treating nail fungus at all. Many argue as follows: does treating a fungal disease require money? Requires. How long will the treatment take? Maybe for a long time. Then, really, why bother to treat mycosis? It's as if the nails are being replaced because they can finally be hidden. . .
Is this game worth the candle? Why do you need mycosis treatment? Let's try to understand this problem. . . Once it starts, the fungal infection will not go anywhere until the fungus is destroyed. The fungi are very stubborn and can survive for months in fallen skin scales. So what can you expect from the fungus lurking in your nails? First, the fungal cells enter the skin, are fixed, multiply and spread on it, and then under favorable conditions are introduced into the nail. Over time, the fungus affects all parts of the nail and spreads to other nails or skin. Nail fungus is a breeding ground and a source of infection for other parts of the body. Even if all outbreaks of fungus on the skin of the feet or trunk are cured, re-infection will come from the remaining outbreaks of nail infection.
Fungal diseases of the nails worsen the quality of life. Studies conducted by the National Academy of Mycology show that the presence of nail fungus or athlete's foot significantly reduces the quality of life - a set of indicators that characterize a person's emotional, mental and social well-being. It turned out that the quality of life in fungal diseases of the nails decreases on average to 50-55% of the total value characteristic of a healthy person. At the same time, patients not only experience physical discomfort associated with thickening or destruction of the nails, but also experience different experiences, fears and negative emotions. It has been established that nail fungus severely limits a person's activity, interfering with his rest, sports, communication with other people. In addition, feelings of discomfort and shame about the condition of their nails sometimes prevented them from seeing a doctor in a timely manner. The longer the disease lasts, the more severe the nail fungus becomes and the worse the quality of life.
In addition to reducing the quality of life, the fungus also leads to certain health problems. The first and main health problem caused by the presence of nail fungus is the fungus itself - a chronic infectious disease that permanently destroys the nails and threatens to spread among the people around them, especially among the patient's family members. The presence of a relative with the fungus, by the way, is noted by at least 1/3 of patients with nail damage. According to medical statistics and epidemiological studies in Russia, the presence of fungal nail diseases can be expected in almost every fifth adult. At the same time the incidence in the last 10 years has increased by 2, 5 times. A further increase in morbidity is expected. At the same time, the probability of the presence of the fungus increases with age: approximately 2 times every 10 years of life.
Untreated nail fungus and athlete's foot are considered a gateway to other infectious diseases - such as bacterial - erysipelas. Fungal nail infection significantly complicates the course of diabetes and can lead to serious complications.
Allergy of the human body with a fungal infection is possible - the formation of hypersensitivity to the fungus as an allergen, ie a fungal allergy. The development or worsening of the course of diseases such as bronchial asthma, allergic dermatitis, various skin rashes and reactions is possible.
In very rare cases, as a rule, against the background of immunodeficiency, untreated nail fungus leads to the development of deep mycosis - germination or penetration of the fungus with blood into the internal organs, which caused death. Fortunately, most modern patients with nail fungus do not have such results. But even if you completely rule out their possibility, you can not leave the fungal nail disease without treatment. It is impossible not to cure scabies, head lice and other infectious diseases. If you suspect nail fungus, we advise you to see a doctor as soon as possible.
While we were thinking this way, the fungus in someone's nail may have moved forward by a few millimeters. This is his job, a small business, so to speak. Fungi do this all the time, day after day. The days add up to weeks, weeks to months, months to years. Over the years, the disease worsens if the fungus is not treated. In one recent study, it was shown that every 5 years the severity of onychomycosis increases by several points on a special scale. This means that the new nails are affected by the fungus and in each of them the affected area and the degree of thickening increases. This means that the negative impact of mycosis on health and quality of life will be stronger. This is a proven fact. But that's not all. The more severe the fungal nail infection, the more difficult it is to treat. If in the early stages of the infection antifungal varnish or nail solution can help, after a few years the antifungal pills can not give up. The longer the disease lasts, the longer it will have to be taken (and more to buy). And after ten to twenty years, as a rule, only the removal of the nail plate, plus these funds will help.
See your doctor as early as possible. Every year you put off the fungus, prolong the necessary period of treatment and monitoring, add large doses of drugs, do the necessary nail treatment. Don't make a big mistake - don't take systemic drugs alone! If the fungal diseases of the nails did not cause the above-mentioned changes, then in fact the treatment of the fungus would become only a matter of attitude to appearance. Then we would put healthy nails on the same list along with white teeth, clean skin and no bad smell. And the question about the cost of treating mycosis would sound like this: Are you ready to give money to get back your uneaten, non-fat and unwanted nails? However, the issue is not the only one. Are you willing to pay to protect your family from the athlete's feet? Do you want to regain your previous quality of life? Can you stop the spread of the infection today?