[Epidemiology of tinea capitis].
PREDOMINANT IN CHILDREN: Tinea capitis is the most frequent fungal infection in children under the age of puberty. It occurs only rarely in men but is observed in adult women. Human-to-human, animal-to-human and soil-to-human transmission can be involved.


BACKGROUND
The spectrum of fungal species known to cause tinea capitis has steadily grown for more than a century, varying with the local urban or rural environment. Since the beginning of the 20th century and up to the advent of griseofulvin in the sixties, M. audouinii, an anthropophilic species, caused major epidemics in France, England and the USA. In the sixties to eighties, M. canis was the cause of most cases observed throughout the world. Over the last 20 years, anthropophilic species have again become the leading cause of tinea capitis epidemics, particularly in large cities, in relationship with immigration: T. tonsuransi in the USA and England and T. soudanense and M. langeronii in France.
Despite the benign curable nature of the disease, interhuman transmission of tinea capitis is nevertheless a considerable public health problem due to the increasing number of children affected and the risk of contagion in schools. The considerations resulting from recent studies point out the fact that transmission occurs more often in the family than the school setting, particularly indirectly by common use of grooming instruments. This would explain the high percentage of tinea capitis in large immigrant families where hair combing habits favor transmission. In France, these observations should lead to a revision of the current regulations concerning expulsion from school of children affected by tinea capitis. Better education would be a more appropriate response to the problem.
Feuilhade
M
M
Laboratoire de Mycologie, Hôpital Saint-Louis, 1, avenue C. Vellefaux, F 75010 Paris.
Lacroix
C
C
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004641:Emigration and Immigration; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006920:Hygiene; D015994:Incidence; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D010353:Patient Education as Topic; D011634:Public Health; D012574:Schools; D014006:Tinea Capitis / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000635:transmission