title: Mycological examination of the barbers' tools about sources of fungal infections.
abstract: The purpose of this study was to determine the colonisation of causative agents for fungal skin infections on the tools and surfaces of barbershops. A total of 357 samples from tools and surfaces of 32 barbershops in Erzurum, Turkey were collected and examined for fungal pathogens. From the combs, Trichophyton rubrum (1), non-dermatophytic moulds (35) and Candida albicans (1); from the hairbrushes, T. rubrum (3), T. mentagrophytes (1), non-dermatophytic moulds (21) and yeast (1); from the shaving brushes, non-dermatophytic moulds (2) and C. albicans (2); from the headrest of barber chairs, T. rubrum (1), non-dermatophytic moulds (19) were isolated. No fungi were isolated from towels. In conclusion, this study showed that shared tools and contacted surfaces in barbershops are important sources for fungal colonization and may play an important role in spreading mycotic infections among people.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology and Clinical Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Ataturk University, Erzurum 25240, Turkey. uhakan@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Hakan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Uslu
authors.forename: Muhammet
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Uyanik
authors.forename: Ahmet
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ayyildiz
mesh_terms: D003881:Dermatomycoses / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000635:transmission; D004783:Environmental Microbiology; D005658:Fungi / Q000145:classification* / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006801:Humans; D014421:Turkey