Tinea caput medusa: an unusual presentation of Trichophyton mentagrophytes on the scalp.
Tinea capitis has a wide variety of clinical presentations in adolescents and adults. However, the occurrence of fingerlike projections in the scalp has not been previously described. A 14-year-old girl presented with a one-year history of a painful scalp mass. Debridement of this mass revealed slender papillomatous growths resembling those seen in elephantiasis nostras verrucosa. A fungal culture grew Trichophyton mentagrophytes. We describe the first case of this unusual clinical variant of tinea capitis and hypothesize on its pathophysiological basis.
Houck
H E
HE
Department of Dermatology, University of Maryland, Baltimore, USA.
Cooley
J E
JE
Lowitt
M H
MH
Kao
G F
GF
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D003646:Debridement / Q000379:methods; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006118:Griseofulvin / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D014006:Tinea Capitis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D014249:Trichophyton / Q000302:isolation & purification*
D006118:Griseofulvin