Prevalence of dermatophytosis in patients with diabetes

Abstract

Controversy still exists as to whether dermatophytic skin infection is truly more common in patients with diabetes. The purpose of this study was to determine the true prevalence of dermatophytosis in diabetic patients as compared with a control population. One hundred consecutive diabetic patients were examined for evidence of fungal disease of the skin and compared with nondiabetic, nonimmunocompromised patients. Potassium hydroxide preparation and fungal cultures were obtained from all suspect lesions. Thirty-one percent of the diabetic population had culture-proven fungal infections compared with 33% of the control group. The organism most commonly isolated was Trichophyton rubrum in both groups, and the feet were the most common site of infection. Candida albicans was more prevalent in the control group, affecting the nails in particular (24% vs 15% in the diabetic patients). This study shows that there does not seem to be an increased prevalence of dermatophytosis in diabetic patients as compared with a control, nondiabetic patient.