Tinea incognito in Korea and its risk factors: nine-year multicenter survey.
Tinea incognito (TI) is a dermatophytic infection which has lost its typical clinical appearance because of improper use of steroids or calcineurin inhibitors. The incidence of TI is increasing nowadays. We conducted retrospective review on 283 patients with TI from 25 dermatology training hospitals in Korea from 2002-2010 to investigate the demographical, clinical, and mycological characteristics of TI, and to determine the associated risk factors. More than half (59.3%) patients were previously treated by non-dermatologists or self-treated. The mean duration of TI was 15.0 ± 25.3 months. The most common clinical manifestations were eczema-like lesion, psoriasis-like, and lupus erythematosus-like lesion. The trunk and face were frequently involved, and 91 patients (32.2%) also had coexisting fungal infections. Among 67 isolated strains, Trichophyton rubrum was the most frequently detected (73.1%). This is the largest study of TI reported to date and the first investigational report concerning TI in Korea. We suggest that doctors should consider TI when a patient has intractable eczema-like lesions accompanied by tinea pedis/unguium. Furthermore, there should be a policy change, which would make over-the-counter high-potency topical steroids less accessible in some countries, including Korea.
Department of Dermatology, Pusan National University School of Medicine, Busan, Korea. ; Biomedical Research Institute, Pusan National University Hospital, Busan, Korea.
Won-Jeong
WJ
Kim
Tae-Wook
TW
Kim
Je-Ho
JH
Mun
Margaret
M
Song
Hoon-Soo
HS
Kim
Hyun-Chang
HC
Ko
Byung-Soo
BS
Kim
Chun Wook
CW
Park
Seok-Jong
SJ
Lee
Mu Hyoung
MH
Lee
Kyu Suk
KS
Lee
Young Chul
YC
Kye
Kee Suck
KS
Suh
Hyun
H
Chung
Ai Young
AY
Lee
Ki Ho
KH
Kim
Sook Kyung
SK
Lee
Kyoung Chan
KC
Park
Jun Young
JY
Lee
Jee Ho
JH
Choi
Eun-So
ES
Lee
Kwang Hoon
KH
Lee
Eung Ho
EH
Choi
Jong Keun
JK
Seo
Gwang Seong
GS
Choi
Hai Jin
HJ
Park
Seok Kweon
SK
Yun
Seong Jun
SJ
Seo
Tae Young
TY
Yoon
Kwang Ho
KH
Kim
Hee Joon
HJ
Yu
Young Suck
YS
Ro
Moon-Bum
MB
Kim
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003710:Demography; D004485:Eczema / Q000473:pathology; D005145:Face / Q000473:pathology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008178:Lupus Erythematosus, Cutaneous / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011565:Psoriasis / Q000473:pathology; D056910:Republic of Korea; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D014005:Tinea / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000382:microbiology; D014249:Trichophyton / Q000302:isolation & purification; D055815:Young Adult
Calcineurin Inhibitor; Dermatophytoses; Korea; Steroid; Tinea; Tinea Incognito