Common signs of foot fungus: medical classification, treatment methods, prevention

The prevalence of mycoid diseases has made them recognizable and easily treatable diseases in their early stages. But the very signs of fungus on the feet, indicating the beginning of the infection, are not known to every person. After all, there are about fifty varieties of fungi. But there is also a broad category of skin diseases - epidermicosis. Therefore, in order to prevent the development of the disease to a state dangerous to the health of the body, it is necessary to study its characteristics.

General signs

Fungal skin infections are in first place among the diseases affecting the epidermis. Its signs are quite recognizable. The main difficulty in the diagnostic process is establishing the exact type of fungal infection. This is necessary because each of them is resistant to a certain group of antifungal drugs. Therefore, in order to carry out treatment, a mandatory visit to the doctor is required. Accurate identification of the mycoid group is impossible without special biological studies.

The following signs may be a reason to contact a specialist:

• Cracks in the epidermis between the toes. It is this area that is considered most at risk of fungal infection. Additional evidence of infection may include excessively dry skin, peeling feet, and pain.
• Noticeable thickening and roughening of the skin layer. Similar symptoms are observed when a corn or dry callus forms. But in some cases, the cause of this change is a fungus.
• Skin breakdown, blisters. Such injuries are often first diagnosed on one leg and subsequently appear on the other.
• Redness of the epidermis, itching or burning sensation. This set of symptoms is considered one of the main signals confirming a fungal infection. The difficulty of diagnosis in this case lies in the fact that each type of mycoid causes such a set of symptoms.
• Change in the color of the nail plate.
• The appearance of an unpleasant odor in the infected area.

It is important to find the first signs of fungus in time, because the disease is very difficult to treat and it is easy to get infected.

Mycoid infection quite easily penetrates the body, infecting internal organs and systems. This explains the frequent relapses of the disease in the complete absence of external provoking factors.

Medical classification

Mycosis fungoides is classified according to its characteristic features into four main forms.

For each form of foot fungus, symptoms vary depending on what it is:

1. Squamous.
2. Dyshidrotic.
3. Intertriginous.
4. "Classic" onychomycosis.

The squamous or scaly form of a fungal infection is considered one of the initial stages of the infection. Skin lesions in this case are first observed on one leg. After a while, a second infection occurs. The main symptom of the scaly form is redness of the skin, which subsequently develops into keratinization of inflamed tissue areas. Without treatment, the squamous form develops into a dyshidrotic form.

The dyshidrotic form of mycoid infection has a pronounced characteristic - the appearance of small bubbles in the affected area. After opening, the blisters become inflamed, forming a stable focus of erosion of the upper layers of the skin. The patient usually experiences severe itching, in quite advanced cases it turns into pain. The skin begins to peel and erosions form regularly. This form of the disease can develop into the first squamous form without a system. Therefore, some experts believe that the mentioned forms of fungal mycosis are two forms of the same type of infection.

The intertriginous form of infectious fungal infection is the most common. Manifestations of the disease include the appearance of cracks in the skin of the legs, visible to the naked eye, and the formation of exfoliated areas of white skin along their edges. For the interdigital area, a characteristic sign of the intertriginous form is the formation of weeping spots and erosion of the epidermis. The patient constantly experiences itching in the infected area. The treatment of this form of infection is complicated and long-lasting, since the disease most often goes into a chronic form.

Onychomycosis is an infectious infection, to the symptoms of which special attention is paid. Depending on the characteristics of the pathology, the type of damage to the nail plate and the type of disease change. There are three main types of onychomycosis:

1. Hypertrophic - the nail plate gradually shrinks, its color changes to yellowish and characteristic spots appear. Pain in the affected area occurs after deformation of the nail.
2. Normotrophic - there is no destruction or change in the shape of the nail plate, spots or lines of yellowish and white color appear on it.
3. Atrophic is the most dangerous form for the nail plate, in which it is highly destroyed, deformed and often detaches from the nail bed.

Each form of onychomycosis has its own general treatment regimen. But in order to completely get rid of the infection without consequences for the body and to exclude a relapse, it is recommended to carry out treatment on the recommendation and under the supervision of a doctor.

Methods of treatment

In most cases, it is possible to completely get rid of a timely detected disease in a maximum of a month. This is a very important point in the treatment, as itching, tissue damage and other manifestations disappear, the patient sometimes stops the treatment, believing that the disease has been defeated. But the remnants of the infection can easily cause a relapse.

Treatment procedures should be stopped only after a doctor's permission and after passing the necessary tests. This is especially true for advanced forms of the disease. The fungus is firmly "fixed" in the body and sometimes it can take at least six months to get rid of it. But the external manifestation of fungus on the legs in the form of various damage to the skin or nails disappears much earlier, creating the illusion of healthBy stopping therapy in this case, the patient is almost guaranteed to provoke a relapse.

The treatment of feet in case of mycoid infection is carried out complexly. To get rid of the disease, local antifungal drugs and tablets are used to eliminate the infectious agent that has penetrated the body. To get rid of itching, pain, brittle nails and speed up tissue regeneration, certain drugs can be prescribed. It is not recommended to combine them alone with the main therapeutic group, so as not to provoke an allergic reaction or poisoning of the body due to the simultaneous use of incompatible drugs.

Treating foot fungus at an early stage is quite easy. Usually, two weeks of therapy is sufficient to eliminate the symptoms of mycoid infection.

Duration of treatment

Combined infection of the skin and nail plate requires rehabilitation therapy from one to three months. These conditions are considered standard for the most medically effective pharmaceutical products.

Pregnancy requires a mandatory visit to the doctor to choose a method to eliminate mycoid infection. Powerful drugs and therapies that require the use of such drugs are prescribed only under the supervision of a doctor and in compliance with strict dosages. Many antibacterial tablets that effectively destroy fungi can cause noticeable damage to the fetus. Therefore, whenever possible, during pregnancy, it is recommended that patients be treated using recipes from traditional medicine. Many of them allow you to cope with the disease, but on the condition that the disease has not reached a complicated stage. Only classical medicine can help to cope with the advanced form.

Modern drugs allow you to completely restore the health of your feet within two weeks, provided that the signs of infection are detected in time.

Precautions

Preventing a disease is always easier and safer for health than treating it, even with the most gentle method. In the case of a fungal infection, prevention is one of the mandatory norms of life, since it is very easy to get infected. Therefore, to reduce the risk of contracting the disease, it is recommended to follow a few simple rules:

• try to eat right, eating healthy foods whenever possible;
• do not use foreign objects and personal hygiene products;
• use basic protective equipment in public places, such as spare shoes and antibacterial hygiene products;
• wash your feet and change your socks regularly;
• lead a healthy lifestyle;
• Take regular baths to improve foot health;
• periodically disinfect the shoes.

Preventing a yeast infection is important not only to prevent it, but also if the disease occurs. In this situation, compliance with sanitary and hygienic standards helps to speed up treatment and prevent the infection of others with the fungus.