Fungal lichen is a dermatological disease, the occurrence of which is provoked by pathogenic agents. In some cases, the development of the disease is affected by autoimmune diseases and allergic reactions. Brown spots may appear on the skin, which provoke itching, swelling, and pain. In the initial stages, changes may not cause the patient obvious discomfort. However, in the absence of the necessary treatment, lichen will spread to an increasingly large area.
Causes of the disease
Fungal microorganisms that provoke the development of lichen can be classified into several groups:
- Zooanthropophilic bacteria colonize the skin and coat of animals in colonies. Very often carriers of the disease are pets - cats and dogs. It is enough to stroke the animal by coat so that fungal skin diseases (lichen) can fix their microspores. Children very often pet stray animals - this is one of the most common causes of the disease in babies. If domestic dogs and cats undergo proper care, then homeless with almost 100% guarantee are carriers of depriving microspores.
- Anthropophilic. This fungus only survives on human skin, so a sick person is a source of infection for healthy people. In such cases, trichophytosis develops. This is a common dermatological pathology, the symptoms and treatment of which is similar to ordinary fungal lichen.
- Geophilic microspores depriving - in water and soil. Infection most often occurs after working in the garden without protective gloves, with bare hands. You can get infected by collecting root crops or by bathing in a reservoir in which microspores are present. This method is the most rare, since today soil and water bodies are tested by relevant organizations for possible harm to human health.
As a rule, fungal lichen develops only in people with reduced immunity. These may be children, since the defenses of their body are not yet formed similarly to adults. If microspores get on the skin of a healthy person, they may simply not multiply. But lichen is guaranteed to prove itself "in all its glory" in patients with autoimmune diseases, with diabetes and with chronic diseases of internal organs.
Varieties and classification of the disease
In humans, fungal lichen can manifest itself in different ways. The treatment is practically no different, but often dermatologists give preference to one or another type of drug, depending on the associated symptoms. Depending on the method of infection and the patient’s immunity, lichen may be:
- Fungal ringworm is a common form in humans in children and adults. Diagnosed most often. Transmitted from a person or animal to another person. It develops especially rapidly against a background of reduced immunity or chronic diseases. Dermatology distinguishes several forms of fungal lichen in humans. The most severe is suppurative-infiltrative. The affected area of the skin can reach a diameter of ten to fifteen centimeters. It swells, becomes very dense, and after some time pus begins to stand out. Most often deployed on the forearms, back, neck, face.
- Pink lichen does not always have a fungal nature. People without a medical background often confuse it with dermatitis. Pink lichen is most often just a peculiar reaction of the body to an allergic component. It is a spot on the surface of the body pink. Pus almost never stands out. Over time, the spots swell, pink plaques form.
- Pityriasis and lichen are also not classified as fungal. Most often, the causes of their development are an allergy or the body's immune response to external stimuli. There is a simple test to check for multi-colored lichen - if you stain the stain with iodine solution, the substance will be absorbed very quickly, and the skin area itself will turn dark. Treatment of non-fungal lichen is not difficult: most often the symptoms go away by itself after two to three weeks. However, if the spots cause pain or the patient is forced to endure severe itching due to them, you should consult a dermatologist.
Symptoms and stages of development
Depending on the stage, the treatment of fungal lichen in a person will differ. Dermatology distinguishes three stages of the disease:
- Superficial stage: the appearance of a spot on the body, which so far does not cause severe discomfort. Depending on the individual characteristics of the patient, this stage can last from one week to a year. The spots condense over time and resemble externally wen (lipomas). If a fungal lichen affects the scalp, hair may fall out, concomitant diseases - dry or oily seborrhea, dandruff. At this stage, superficial treatment is necessary, you can do without taking pills and capsules.
- When fungal lichen passes into the second stage, the patient begins to worry about discomfort. Seals itch, in some cases it hurts. Purulent discharge may appear. Pigmentation can be enhanced depending on the individual characteristics of the patient from red to maroon. If there is only one focus, you can still limit yourself to local external treatment. If the fungal lichen has affected a large area of the body or there are too many foci, you will have to come to grips with the treatment and take a course of pills.
- In the third stage, the disease causes significant discomfort and reduces the patient's performance. He is forced to refuse to wear open clothes, as the disease reaches its peak: it spreads on the surface of the rug, legs, neck and face. If the patient has brought the disease to this stage, he should be ready for long and serious drug therapy, which includes not only external treatment with external drugs, but also courses of antihistamines and antivirals, as well as immunomodulating drugs.
Diagnosis of the disease: which doctor should I contact?
At the first symptoms of infection with a fungal infection, you should consult a dermatologist. He, in turn, will write a direction for laboratory tests. Often, additional consultation with an immunologist, allergist is required.
General and biochemical blood tests should be taken to make sure that there are no chronic diseases of the internal organs. If he is diagnosed, they should be treated too. Until the patient reaches a certain level of health, relapse depriving him may bother him, getting rid of the fungus is not so simple as it seems at first glance.
To accurately determine the type of lichen, the following studies should be carried out:
- microscopy of flakes from the affected skin is done in order to exclude the possibility of syphilis in the patient;
- scraping from the affected area is needed in order to accurately determine the type of pathogen depriving;
- blood sampling is done, a general and biochemical analysis is performed;
- you need to pass urine for a general analysis.
To clarify the diagnosis (in some cases, it is acceptable to doubt the accuracy of the diagnosis), the following stages of the study are carried out:
- Scraping from the affected area of the skin is checked to detect the DNA of the fungus that provoked lichen.
- The presence of antibodies to infection can be checked by passing a blood test.
How to independently diagnose lichen?
It is difficult, but possible, to independently diagnose fungal lichen on the body. You should compare your own symptoms with those characteristic for lichen:
- Very often, the disease appears after suffering chickenpox, chickenpox, serious flu: the body is weakened, and microspores actively multiply.
- It should be remembered: whether in the recent past there was contact with stray animals, whether there was swimming in a closed body of water or work with bare hands directly in the soil.
- The appearance of small spots of pink color, which eventually hardened and slightly swollen (while they may cause itching or slight pain, but may not bother at all).
- Spots are transformed into vesicles filled with liquid, pus may be released - not always, but over time, fungal lichen (photo below) can give such a complication. In this case, bubbles and wounds should in no case be tried to burst or squeeze out on their own.
- After a few months, the tubercles darken, they are not affected by therapeutic ointments, skin lesions begin to bring strong pain.
- Lichen gradually grows to a larger area, the so-called "daughter" formations on the skin begin to form.
Overview of ointments for fungal lichen
Frequently prescribed medications:
- "Exoderil" - a popular remedy, is an ointment for external use. It quickly helps to get rid of itching, helps to separate purulent escudant from the wounds. Of the minuses - the relatively high cost of the ointment.
- Lamisil is an external therapy for mycosis. It allows to reduce spots in size, especially if you use Lamisil in combination with internal therapy methods (taking antibiotics and antiviral drugs).
- "Clotrimazole" is an effective ointment with an antibiotic in the composition, the use of which allows to reduce the severity of symptoms of fungal lichen.
- "Mycoseptin" has a local disinfecting, antiseptic effect. Effective both in the initial stages of depriving, and in the later. The use of ointment can bring temporary relief, but if you do not take other steps to alleviate the condition, then relapse of the disease is inevitable.
A review of tablet preparations for lichen
Doctors also prescribe:
- "Oletetrin" in the composition has active active components of oleandomycin phosphate and tetracycline. It is an effective antibiotic, treating fungal lichen with it is simple and effective. The required dosage is prescribed by a dermatologist. Depending on the gender, age and weight of the patient, the dosage may vary. The antibiotic has a number of side effects and contraindications. It is highly recommended not to take it on your own without preliminary laboratory tests and making an accurate diagnosis.
- "Valtrex" - a remedy No. 1 for fungal herpes zoster. Actively destroys the herpes simplex virus of two types, contributes to the inhibition of viral DNA. After administration, phosphorylation selectivity is maintained. It is prescribed for herpes zoster, the treatment of relapses of various skin diseases, and the prevention of skin diseases.
- Nystatin is a cheap and old antibiotic, but still in demand in candidiasis, lichen and other fungal skin lesions. Effective even in small dosages. It can be used as part of the complex treatment of fungal lichen in children. As part of complex therapy (ointments should be used in parallel) is especially effective.
Nutrition Correction for Fast Recovery
In parallel with the tablet and external treatment, you should adhere to a healthy lifestyle. Adults should completely eliminate alcohol from their diet.
Both children and adults should receive a full range of vitamins, minerals and amino acids every day during treatment for fungal lichen. Otherwise, the body simply will not have the strength to fight the fungus. Animal protein should be present daily in the diet: it is he who is responsible for the regeneration of the skin. Turkey, veal, pork, chicken, dairy products - treatment of fungal lichen in children and adults without daily intake of these products is meaningless. Against the general background of malnutrition and weakness, the fungus will be activated again and again, despite complex treatment.
Folk methods of treatment of fungal lichen
Most often, alternative methods of therapy can only bring temporary relief. It is possible to completely cure lichen only with the help of antibacterial and antiviral drugs. However, in some cases, the patient is happy to even temporarily alleviate the condition for at least a few hours.
- Compresses from apple cider vinegar and garlic: grate the head on a fine grater, pour vinegar. Soak a bandage or cotton pad with the resulting liquid and apply to the lesion on the skin. If the patient experiences a severe burning sensation, vinegar should be diluted with water to an acceptable concentration, otherwise a burn may result.
- Take a regular newspaper and gently burn it. The resulting ash should be applied to the site affected by lichen. Ash has an antiseptic effect.
- In 200 ml of alcohol add 50 g of propolis. Insist for a week. After this time, make compresses of tincture of the skin affected by lichen from the tincture. The optimal frequency of use is twice a day.
Preventive measures: how to prevent re-infection?
Even if you managed to get rid of the symptoms of lichen, you can’t relax: very often after a few weeks the disease appears, and it affects even more extensive areas of the skin. To prevent this, the following preventive measures should be used:
- avoid overwork, allow yourself to get enough sleep: otherwise the immunity will not be restored to the value necessary to completely get rid of the fungus;
- a balanced diet is another factor that affects immunity;
- regularly take a test for viral infections.