Health care providers should watch out for new and highly contagious forms of ringworm or jock itch, which are emerging as a potential public health threat, according to a pair of reports. In the first of the studies, experts at NYU Langone Health who focus on the spread of contagious rashes document the first reported U.S.
case of a sexually transmitted fungal infection that can take months to clear up even with treatment. In the second report, NYU Langone physicians partnered with authorities at the New York State Department of Health to describe the largest group of patients in the country with a similar fungal strain that resists standard therapies. Both species of fungi are among a group that causes skin rashes, or tinea, that easily spread on the face and limbs (ringworm), groin (jock itch), and feet (athlete's foot).
However, the tinea explored in the new reports can look very different from the neat, regular circles seen in most forms of ringworm. They may instead be confused for lesions caused by eczema and can therefore go without proper treatment for months. The first report, published online on June 5 in the journal JAMA Dermatology , describes a man in his 30s who developed tinea on his penis, buttocks, and limbs after returning home to New York City from a trip to England, Greece, and California.
Genetic tests of fungal samples collected from the patient's rashes revealed that the infection was caused by the species Trichophyton mentagrophytes type VII (TMVII). .
