Epidemiological and clinical pattern of dermatomycoses in rural India.

Superficial fungal infections are most common in tropical and subtropical countries. In this study, 297 suspected superficial fungal infection cases were identified among 15,950 patients screened. The collected samples (skin, nail, and hair) were subjected to direct microscopy with potassium hydroxide and cultured on Sabourauds dextrose agar to identify the fungal species. The prevalence of superficial fungal infection was 27.6% (82/297), dermatophytosis was 75.6% (62/82), and non-dermatophytosis was 24.4% (20/82). Among the isolated dermatophytes, Trichophyton rubrum was the commonest species (79%) and Candida (60%) the commonest non-dermatophytic species. Tinea corporis was the commonest (78%) clinical presentation.