Don't walk barefoot in areas like locker rooms or public showers. Clip your fingernails and toenails short and keep them clean. Change your socks and underwear at least once a day. Don't share clothing, towels, sheets, or other personal items with someone who has ringworm.
The infection can spread via skin-to-skin contact, clothing, or surfaces where the fungus lives, such as in showers or locker rooms. It's more common among people with compromised immune systems and can spread more easily among families (because of skin contact) or athletes (because of the locker room environment).
Ringworm is an itchy, contagious fungal infection that causes a ring-shaped pattern on your skin. Over-the-counter and prescription treatments can stop the fungus from spreading to other parts of your body or to others.
Do not cover the ringworm with a bandage. Wash and dry your hands well.
Ringworm stops being contagious after 48 hours of antifungal treatment. Treatment options include topical creams or oral medication. Without treatment, people are contagious until the ringworm rash goes away. This can take up to 3 weeks.
Touching or scratching the area with ringworm and then touching another area can spread ringworm from one part of your body to another. Washing your hands well can help prevent this.
Steroid creams can make ringworm worse because they weaken the skin's defenses. Steroid creams can allow ringworm infections to spread to cover more of the body. Ringworm that has been treated with steroid creams can have an unusual appearance, making it hard for healthcare providers to diagnose.
Terbinafine (Lamisil) comes in creams, sprays, and gels and can treat athlete's foot, jock itch, and other ringworm infections on the skin. The CDC says terbinafine seems to be the most effective treatment for tinea pedis.
Because the fungi can live indefinitely on the skin, recurrences of ringworm are likely. Treatment may need to be repeated. If you have ringworm symptoms, see your healthcare provider for treatment recommendations. It is important to note that common home remedies do not effectively treat this condition.
People can get ringworm after contact with someone who has the infection. To avoid spreading the infection, people with ringworm shouldn't share clothing, towels, combs, or other personal items with other people. 2.
Ringworm is highly contagious and can spread through contact with other areas of the body and other people. Ringworm remains contagious for some time, even when a person is undergoing treatment for the infection.
The following are the foods you should avoid when you have a ringworm infection. - Foods that contain sugar, including fruits. - Refined carbohydrates like white rice and pasta.
You should contact your healthcare provider if: Your infection gets worse or doesn't go away after using non-prescription medications. You or your child has ringworm on the scalp. Ringworm on the scalp needs to be treated with prescription antifungal medication.
Typically, it takes two to four weeks with treatment for a ringworm infection to clear up. However, ringworm infections on the scalp, facial hair and nails, however, tend to last for a few months. Immunocompromised people might find it more challenging to get rid of an infection.
Most mild cases of ringworm usually clear up in 2 to 4 weeks. But treatment might be needed for up to 3 months if the infection is more serious, or affects the nails or the scalp.
Most ringworm infections are mild and can be treated using a pharmacy antifungal cream. Scalp infections can be treated with antifungal tablets, sometimes combined with antifungal shampoo. If the skin is irritated or broken, it can lead to other bacterial infections, which may need treatment with antibiotics.
Take a shower or bath every day (especially after playing sports and sweating) and dry off completely. Wear clean clothing. Change your clothes every day. Use clean towels and don't share towels or clothes.
For items that can be washed, they should be washed in the longest washing cycle with detergent two times and then dried completely in the dryer. It is important that the washer and dryer are not overloaded, as again the mechanical movements are the most important component in removing debris infected with ringworm.
Ringworm spores persist in the environment, making eradication difficult. So a successful outcome requires treatment of all pets and scrupulous cleaning of the home. To kill ringworm spores, clean and disinfect solid surfaces. Launder bedding and other fabric, small area rugs and soft articles.
The fungi that cause this infection can live on skin, surfaces, and on household items such as clothing, towels, and bedding. Ringworm goes by many names. The medical terms are “tinea” or “dermatophytosis.”
mechanical removal of all hair and debris via vacuuming, sweeping (Swiffers recommended over brooms) and mechanical washing of the surfaces with detergent and water. It is important to thoroughly rinse surfaces as some detergent residue can inactivate disinfecting agents.