Abstract
Background and Purpose:The epidemiological features of dermatophytoses have been characterized in many geographical locations of Iran, but not in Guilan, North of Iran. This study was carried out to determine the distribution pattern of dermatophytoses and their relevant agents in Guilan, North of Iran, over a period of one year, from April 2010 to April 2011.Materials and Methods:The clinical samples of skin, hair, and nail from 889 outpatients (317 men vs. 572 women) were used for direct microscopy and culture. All the culture-positive samples were then subjected to amplification of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) of the nuclear rDNA followed by a restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) assay to verify the causative agents.Results:The infection was confirmed in 90 (44.3%) males and 113 (55.7%) females. The most common type of dermatophytoses was tinea cruris (42.9%), followed by tinea pedis (20.2%), tinea corporis (11.3%), tinea unguium (7.4%), tinea faciei (6.9%), tinea manuum (6.4%), and tinea capitis (4.9%). ITS-RFLP based of the identification of isolates, showed that the infections were significantly associated with anthropophilic species, of Trichophyton rubrum (41.9%), Epidermophyton floccosum (19.7%), T. tonsurans (5.4%), and T. violaceum (2%). Other causative agents were T. interdigitale (22.6%), Microsporum canis (4.9%), T. verrucosum (2.5%), and M. gypseum (1%).Conclusion: The higher prevalence of T. rubrum, as the agent of dermatophytoses, than other species has never been reported from Iran and is of public health concern because of the chronic nature of infections with anthropophilic species. To thoroughly investigate the epidemiological trend of dermatophytoses in Iran, further periodical and molecular-based studies are necessary.
Highlights
Ringworm infection or tinea is a spectrum of skin mycoses due to dermatophytes, a group of closely related fungi belonging to the Trichophyton, Microsporum, and Epidermophyton genera
All the culture-positive samples were subjected to amplification of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) of the nuclear rDNA followed by a restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) assay to verify the causative agents
ITS-RFLP based of the identification of isolates, showed that the infections were significantly associated with anthropophilic species, of Trichophyton rubrum (41.9%), Epidermophyton floccosum (19.7%), T. tonsurans (5.4%), and T. violaceum (2%)
Summary
Ringworm infection or tinea (medically termed as dermatophytosis) is a spectrum of skin mycoses due to dermatophytes, a group of closely related fungi belonging to the Trichophyton, Microsporum, and Epidermophyton genera. It is well known that the distribution patterns of dermatophytoses and the relevant agents can no longer be restricted within a certain geographical region due to the development of tourism and migration activities, change in cultural habits (lifestyle), and socioeconomic and climate conditions. These issues have therapeutic and epidemiological significance; to better understand the epidemiological trends of these infections, regular and successive updating of our knowledge in terms of the geographical patterns of dermatophytoses and pathogenic dermatophytes is mandatory [3,4,5,6,7]. To thoroughly investigate the epidemiological trend of dermatophytoses in Iran, further periodical and molecularbased studies are necessary
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