Athlete's+Foot

= Athlete's Foot    = **Fungal Infection:** Tinea Infections

**Occurrence Risks:** 1. wear closed shoes, especially if they are plastic-lined 2,. Keep your feet wet for prolonged periods of time 3. sweat a lot 4. develop a minor skin or nail injury ** Athlete’s foot is contagious and can be passed through direct contact, or contact with items such as shoes, stockings, and shower or pool surfaces. **

**Symptoms:** Crackled, flaking, peeling skin between the toes. The affected are is usually red and itchy. Burning or stinging. Blisters, oozing, or crusting. Can also occur on heels, palms, and between fingers, as well as between toes.

**Tests and diagnosis:** based on appearance of skin. Skin culture, skin lesion biopsy(examination may show fungus under the microscope), skin lesion KOH exam (skin scrapings in KOH show fungus under the microscope)

**Treatment:** -over-the-counter antifungal powders or creams can help control the infection. These generally contain miconazole, clotrimazole, or tolnaftate. Continue using the medicine for 1-2 weeks after the infection has cleared from your feet to prevent from it returning. Keep feet clean and dry. Wash your feet thoroughly with soap and water and dry the area carefully twice a day, wear clean, cotton socks, and change socks and shoes as often as necessary to keep your feet dry.

-If the infection hasn’t gone away for 2 to 4 weeks, stronger medication may be needed. And antibiotics may be needed as well.

Dry your feet thoroughly after bathing or swimming.
 * Prevention: **
 * Wear sandals or flip-flops at a public shower or pool.
 * Change your socks often to keep your feet dry. This should be done at least once a day.
 * Use antifungal or drying powders to prevent athlete's foot if you are susceptible to getting it, or you frequent areas where athlete's foot fungus is common (like public showers).
 * Wear shoes that are well ventilated and, preferably, made of natural material such as leather. It may help to alternate shoes each day, so they can dry completely between wearings. Avoid plastic-lined shoes.

**Life Cycle:** You can get athlete’s foot from any wet area that one spends so much time in. athlete’s foot is a fungus that begins to grow when one has been in moist areas for too long. Athlete’s foot is VERY contagious, and it can easily be passed from person to person.

**Liklihood**: Athlete’s foot depends mainly on a person’s lifestyle. If they are at the gym, or in a common locker room, there are more chances to get the disease. In Nigeria, there are two main seasons: wet season and dry season. During the wet season it is very rainy and humid which increases the chances of someone getting Athlete’s foot is higher in Nigeria than in the United States.

Bibliography: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001878 http://www.medicinenet.com/athletes_foot/article.htm