Comma hairs: a dermatoscopic marker for tinea capitis: a rapid diagnostic method.
BACKGROUND
Dermatoscopy and videodermatoscopy have been used for several years in the diagnosis of skin disorders.


OBJECTIVE
We sought to determine whether tinea capitis (TC) shows characteristic videodermatoscopy features that may facilitate its differentiation from alopecia areata (AA).


METHODS
Two patients with TC caused by Microsporum canis, confirmed by mycological culture and fluorescence under Wood lamp, were examined with videodermatoscopy and results were compared with videodermatoscopy results of 12 patients with AA.


RESULTS
The distinctive and most prominent feature of TC was presence of commalike structures (comma hairs). These were accompanied by broken and dystrophic hairs. Videodermatoscopy features of AA included exclamation mark hairs, vellus and dystrophic/cadaverized hairs, and yellow dots corresponding to hyperkeratotic hair follicle plugs.


CONCLUSIONS
This study was conducted on two patients, both with M canis infection.


CONCLUSIONS
Comma hairs were observed as a distinctive videodermatoscopy feature of M canis-induced TC. This finding was not observed in AA, typified generally by exclamation mark hairs.
Slowinska
Monika
M
Department of Dermatology, Central Medical Hospital MSWiA, Warsaw, Poland.
Rudnicka
Lidia
L
Schwartz
Robert A
RA
Kowalska-Oledzka
Elzbieta
E
Rakowska
Adriana
A
Sicinska
Justyna
J
Lukomska
Malgorzata
M
Olszewska
Malgorzata
M
Szymanska
Elzbieta
E
D000506:Alopecia Areata / Q000175:diagnosis; D002675:Child, Preschool; D046169:Dermoscopy / Q000379:methods*; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006197:Hair / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D018715:Microscopy, Video / Q000379:methods*; D014006:Tinea Capitis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology*