Fungal infections of the feet often affect the fingers or nails. Not only adults but also children are at risk. To avoid the development of a chronic form of the disease, when the first symptoms appear, a person should immediately begin treatment. In order not to miss the moment, you should know what the disease looks like.
Signs of a fungus on the feet
Mycosis of the feet is the most common pathology among all cutaneous fungal infections. Since it is very easy to get infected with it, many people suffer from this disease from time to time, while curing it completely is a difficult task. This is due to the fact that at the initial process of the development of the fungus, the body becomes infected (the infection enters the bloodstream and spreads to all systems and organs), which leads to subsequent relapses of pathology.
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Each person's leg mycosis begins differently, but there are a number of similar symptoms of the disease. How does a fungus appear on the feet (universal signs):
- cracks appear on the skin between the toes;
- pain and itching may be localized in the area of damage;
- feet are too dry, the skin on them flakes, coarsens and can thicken significantly;
- small bubbles (blisters) may form in the interdigital hollows, which become inflamed when ruptured;
- gradually the infection spreads to areas of the skin that are in the neighborhood;
- redness is observed on the skin of the legs (red spots cause discomfort - itch, hurt);
- an unpleasant odor appears.
Squamous form of mycosis of the feet
This form of pathology is characterized by peeling of the epidermis, usually in the folds between the toes or on the lateral parts of the foot. At the same time, there are no signs of an inflammatory process. Sometimes patients with a fungus are diagnosed with hyperemia of the skin of the legs, which is accompanied by severe itching. What does the fungus on the legs look like in squamous form:
- the stratum corneum of the foot becomes thickened;
- the skin becomes shiny;
- the pattern on the skin becomes more distinguishable;
- the fungus spreads to the fingers, interdigital grooves, dorsal and lateral surfaces of the feet, nails;
- the surface layer of the skin is covered with small lamellar scales;
- the disease does not bring discomfort.
Dyshidrotic fungus
This pathology is accompanied by the appearance of blisters on the legs, which have a thick keratinized apex and are filled with a transparent liquid. The presence of such manifestations is found, as a rule, on the lower lateral parts of the feet, later the blisters spread to the skin of the inner side of the fingers. How to recognize this type of foot fungus:
- The bubble can be single or there are many of them, and they merge into a general formation.
- The fluid, if untreated, begins to grow cloudy, while the blisters burst, and erosion appears in their place with a purulent crust and dry edges. At the same time, there is a high risk of contracting bacterial or viral infections that can enter the body through open wounds on the legs.
Intertriginous form
This type of foot fungus is the most common. The manifestation of pathology at first is not accompanied by any symptoms. As a rule, the infection develops between the 3rd and 4th fingers and does not change the color and structure of the skin until a certain point. After that, wet cracks and layers of skin appear. The foot itself remains intact, but if the fungus is affected, the legs may sweat more than usual. Intertriginous fungus therapy is characterized by moderate complexity.
What does fungus on the toes look like?
Mycosis is a disease caused by microscopic fungal spores. Infection can occur at the time of contact with a sick animal, person, as well as when using common items (towels, bed linen, shoes) or after visiting public institutions such as saunas, swimming pools. What does mycosis on the toes look like:
- The lesion is often located between 3-4 or 4-5 fingers.
- A contour of peeling skin is observed around the lesion.
- The epidermis becomes edematous, slightly reddens.
- There may be fluid bubbles or small pustules near the lesion.
How to identify fungus on the feet
The first stage of the pathology is almost asymptomatic. How does the fungus on the feet begin:
- The folds between the fingers are the first to be affected, later the infection spreads to the lateral areas of the feet, other zones.
- The skin acquires a pink or red tone, becomes denser.
- The epidermis in the affected area cracks, begins to shine, becomes very dry.
- The patient feels itching, burning and pain.
- An unpleasant odor emanates from the feet.
- The site of infection becomes inflamed, bubbles appear, in some cases they are accompanied by ulcers and abscesses.
Diagnosis of mycoses
If you notice any changes in structure, color or odor on your feet, you should see a dermatologist. The sooner mycosis is detected, the more successful and easier the treatment will be. The diagnosis of the disease is based on the mycological method. During the initial stage of the development of the fungus, it is advisable to do a scraping of keratinized tissues, which is sent for microscopy or inoculation to determine the causative agent of the disease.
Differential tests can be used to make a diagnosis, since some skin diseases are similar in their characteristics to mycosis (for example, eczema of a dyshidrotic type). In severe, advanced fungal pathologies, a biopsy of the skin with further morphological and cytological studies is necessary. Timely and correct diagnosis increases the effectiveness of treatment.
Symptoms of toenail disease
How to identify toenail fungus? The defeat of the nail plates, as a rule, occurs after infection of the skin of the legs, being the second stage of infection of the human body. In rare cases, onychomycosis is a separate type of disease, so the pathogen does not affect the skin. What does toenail fungus look like? There are several symptoms that unite all cases of infection with mycosis. Signs of toenail fungus are:
- Change in the color of the nail plate. Depending on the causative agent of the pathology, the nail can acquire different colors, while changing the shade throughout the entire area of the plate or only in certain zones - the foci of localization of the fungus.
- Crumbling of the nail. In severe stages of the disease and complete infection of the nail plate, it begins to collapse.
- Change in structure. What does a fungus look like on the feet? With hyperkeratosis onychomycosis, the nail plate thickens significantly, the bed becomes keratinized. In the case of the onycholytic form of the disease, on the contrary, the plate becomes thinner.
Since there are several types of onychomycosis, you should know how toenail fungus manifests itself in each of the forms. Diagnosing specific symptoms, the doctor determines the type of disease. How to recognize atrophic, hypertrophic and normotrophic toenail fungus:
- Atrophic appearance. The nail plates look thinned, while their color becomes dull and takes on a gray-brown tint. The nail begins to exfoliate from the bed, and the skin under it is covered with keratinized layers that have a loose structure.
- Normotrophic appearance. The nail plate changes color over its entire area: stripes or spots (whitish, yellow, black, greenish or other colors) appear on it. In this case, the structure of the nail looks normal.
- Hypertrophic appearance. This disease is characterized by a thickening of the plate, its deformation, the acquisition of porosity and loss of gloss. The affected nail not only looks ugly, but also brings pain when walking and wearing narrow shoes. On the sides, the plate often crumbles and breaks down more actively than in other areas.