Ask the doctor: ringworm

DR CINDY Pan explains what a case of ringworm means for the family.

doctor

DR CINDY Pan explains what a case of ringworm means for the family.

Question:

My daughter has been diagnosed with ringworm. Does the whole family need worming?

Answer:

Ringworm is a condition that isn’t caused by a worm at all, rather by a fungus. So no, there is no need for worming anyone just because your daughter has this common fungal skin infection.

The best treatment for simple, uncomplicated ringworm is to apply an anti-fungal cream, which you can purchase over the counter from any pharmacy.
 
It’s important to apply treatment regularly until the lesion is fully resolved - which could take anything from one to three weeks, but certainly no more than four weeks.

Continue treatment for a further seven days following disappearance of visible skin signs, to decrease risk of recurrence. If the infection does recur despite this, it would be a good idea to consult your doctor to ensure there is no other problem complicating the condition.

If there is any doubt about the diagnosis, it can be helpful to take a skin scraping to send to the laboratory for examination to confirm the diagnosis.

While the ringworm is healing, it’s important to avoid spreading the infection to other parts of the body or to other people. For this reason, it is often advised to wash the child’s night clothes, towel and possibly even the sheets daily (ideally in hot water with fungicidal soap) while infection is present.

Avoid sharing towels and clothing and avoid any direct skin-to-skin contact with others.

In cases where the ringworm is severe, widespread or resistant to treatment, the doctor may need to prescribe oral anti-fungal medication in the form of pills. Fortunately, this doesn’t tend to happen very often.

Ringworm can affect pets - for example cats and dogs - and other domesticated animals such as cows, horses and sheep. If you have a pet that may be affected you will need to consult your vet for advice, since the disease can be transmitted between animals and humans.

Symptoms of ringworm in pets would include circular bare or bald patches, but there are other conditions in animals that can cause lesions of similar appearance, so consult a vet for a definitive diagnosis.

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