The attitudes, behaviors, and opinions about non-pharmacological agents in patients with tinea pedis.

Abstract

Tinea pedis affects the life quality distinctly and patients those with a prolonged disease often resort to non-medical methods. We sought to evaluate patients' knowledge about tinea pedis and approaches to the non-pharmacological agents. A cross-sectional study was conducted on 152 patients with tinea pedis who answered the survey between July and November 2019. Demographic and clinical features, patients' attitudes, behaviors, and opinions about non-pharmacological treatments related to tinea pedis were evaluated. Of 152 patients, 65 (42.8%) were female and 87 (57.2%) were male. The frequency of at least one non-pharmacological agent use for tinea pedis was 55.9%. The most common non-pharmacological agent was cologne (27.0%), followed by saltwater, vinegar, and henna. The rate of non-pharmacological agent use was not significantly different between genders and patients with different education levels. Information sources for tinea pedis were dermatologists in only 42 patients (27.8%). The opinion that the disease will improve spontaneously was not significantly different between the groups according to the education level (P = .154). Tinea pedis needs awareness as a health problem particularly in Muslim populations. Patients should be prevented from applying wrong practices and informed about the risk factors, contagiousness, and treatment options by physicians.