Epidemiology ofTrichophyton verrucosuminfection in Rennes University Hospital, France: A 12-year retrospective study

Abstract

Trichophyton verrucosum is a zoophilic dermatophyte, known as a causative agent of inflammatory mycoses of the skin and the scalp in humans. In this study, we reviewed all cases of T. verrucosum infection diagnosed in our laboratory over a 12-year period, to determine epidemiological and clinical characteristics. Among 18,340 samples analyzed, 5,186 cultured positive with dermatophytes (2674 patients), of which 64 samples (41 patients) were positive for T. verrucosum. Our data show that there was a strong influence of age on the type of lesion, with children and adults presenting more frequently with tinea capitis and skin infections, respectively (P < .0001). Infection of children and adults resulted more frequently from indirect and direct exposure to cattle, respectively (P < .01). We observed a marked increase of cases over the last 4 years, with a correlation of the number of cases and the mean annual rainfall (P < .05), suggesting that increasing humidity favors cattle infection, and thereby, human infection. Whether this increase is the consequence of climate changes remains to be determined but should be considered.

Infection of Trichophyton verrucosum in cattle breeders, Poland: A 40‐year retrospective study on the genomic variability of strains

“…Molecular methods offer an opportunity to confront the lack of confidence in mycological diagnosis based on only phenotypic biological confirmation with a relatively high discriminatory power and good reproducibility of results . Nowadays, in studies conducted in some countries, for instance in France, T. verrucosum strains are identified without using any molecular techniques . This is sufficient for diagnostics, but on the other hand, finding separate genotypes for each clinical isolate may facilitate epidemiological research because dermatophytoses are mainly zoonotic and easily spread infections .…”

“…In Africa, the antrophophilic dermatophyte T. audouinii , together with T. violaceum and T. soudanense , is the most prevalent pathogen, and the most commonly observed fungal species in Americas are T. rubrum , T. tonsurans and T. mentagrophytes . Knowledge of the local epidemiology of dermatophytes is important to guide the practitioner during consultation, as well as the mycologist during fungal identification . Despite regional characteristics and predispositions for dermatophyte infections, the spectrum of dermatophytes is not static, which is caused primarily by mass transport of animals and increasing human migration …”

The host range of dermatophytes, it is at all possible? Phenotypic evaluation of the keratinolytic activity of Trichophyton verrucosum clinical isolates

“…Currently, the most important species isolated in Europe as causing infection in cattle is Trichophyton verrucosum . During the last few years, the number of cases of T. verrucosum human dermatophytosis has been increasing constantly .…”

“…During the last few years, the number of cases of T. verrucosum human dermatophytosis has been increasing constantly . It seems that the presence of a greater number of cattle rearing farms in Europe could explain the acquisition and transmission of this species of dermatophyte . What is more, traditional outdoor breeding methods with freely wandering and gathering animals, which allows direct contact between animals and between animals and humans, are still predominant .…”

“…It seems that the presence of a greater number of cattle rearing farms in Europe could explain the acquisition and transmission of this species of dermatophyte . What is more, traditional outdoor breeding methods with freely wandering and gathering animals, which allows direct contact between animals and between animals and humans, are still predominant . Trichophyton verrucosum infections and carriers are less frequent in domestic animals other than cattle .…”