Jeelani Shazia; Lanker Audil; Jeelani Nasir; Masood Qazi; Fazili Tawheeda; Majid Huma
Volume 19, Issue 3 , 2016, , Pages 79-85
Abstract
Background: Onychomycosis (OM) is the infection of nails caused by a variety of fungi. As systemic antifungal treatment is necessary in the majority of patients, appropriate diagnostic techniques are important to ensure a correct diagnosis and treatment. Objective: This study was carried out to evaluate ...
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Background: Onychomycosis (OM) is the infection of nails caused by a variety of fungi. As systemic antifungal treatment is necessary in the majority of patients, appropriate diagnostic techniques are important to ensure a correct diagnosis and treatment. Objective: This study was carried out to evaluate the clinical, mycological, and histological aspects of onychomycosis in detail. Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out on 216 patients with a high degree of clinical suspicion for OM. Clinical details including the site, morphological type, and associated diseases were noted in each case. The specimens obtained were subjected to three diagnostic tests: direct microscopy, fungal culture, and histopathological examination using PAS staining. Results: OM was more common in young adults in the age group 20-40 years (40.2%). In the majority (46.3%) of the cases, the duration of the disease was ≤ 1year. Distal and lateral subungual onychomycosis was the most common (73.6%) clinical type. A high incidence of toe nail onychomycosis (68.5%) was noted in our study. Dermatophytes were the most common etiological agent. Among the dermatophytes, Trichophyton mentagrophytes was the most common isolated fungus. Histopathological examination using PAS staining (HPE-PAS) showed the highest sensitivity of 91.6% among the three tests. Conclusion: Dermatophytes are the main agents responsible for OM in this region with T. mentagrophytes being the most common isolate. This study also demonstrated the importance of performing routine histopathology in addition to direct examination and culture for the diagnosis of onychomycosis.
Nazeri Mehdi; Ata-Bakhshian Roya; Taghizadeh Mohsen; Talaee Rezvan; Mahboubi Mohaddese
Volume 18, Issue 1 , 2015, , Pages 10-15
Abstract
Background: Malassezia spp. is an opportunistic dimorphicBasidiomycetous fungi associated with a variety of diseasesincluding dandruff, atopic eczema, pityriasis versicolor, seborrheicdermatitis and folliculitis. It also causes systemic infectionsin immune compromised patients. The aim of this study ...
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Background: Malassezia spp. is an opportunistic dimorphicBasidiomycetous fungi associated with a variety of diseasesincluding dandruff, atopic eczema, pityriasis versicolor, seborrheicdermatitis and folliculitis. It also causes systemic infectionsin immune compromised patients. The aim of this study wasto evaluate the antimicrobial activity of nettle leaves (Urticadioica), colocynths fruits (Citrullus colocynthis), green tea (Camelliasinensis), burdock root (Arctium lappa) extracts and ketoconazoleagainst 26 isolates of Malassezia spp., isolated from patients withMalassezia infections.Method: Twenty-six (26) Malassezia spp. identified by RFLPPCR,were isolated from patients with Malassezia infections. Theantifungal activity was evaluated by micro broth dilution assay.Result: M. globosa (50%), M. furfur (46%) and M. slooffiae (4%)were the isolated strains. There was no significant differencebetween the minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) values forcolocynth extracts and ketoconazole. Also, the antimicrobialactivity of green tea and burdock extracts against Malassezia spp.was not significantly different (P>0.05). The minimal fungicidalconcentration (MFC) values for green tea, colocynth extracts andketoconazole against Malassezia spp. were the same (P>0.05).Conclusion: Further clinical studies are required to determinethe efficacy of C. colocynthis ethanol extract, in the treatment ofMalassezia skin disorders.