Pediatric Tinea Capitis: A Retrospective Cohort Study from 2010 to 2021

Abstract

Pediatric tinea capitis displays a wide range of prevalence, with significant variability among populations. We retrospectively extracted the medical records of 456 pediatric patients diagnosed with tinea capitis during the years 2010–2021, from the dermatology outpatient clinics in two tertiary medical centers. Three species were isolated in 90% of patients: T. tonsurans, M. canis, and T. violaceum. While T. tonsurans presented a six-fold increase in incidence during the years 2019–2021, M. canis maintained stable incidence rates. Furthermore, terbinafine was the most efficient antifungal agent against T. tonsurans, achieving complete clinical clearance in 95% of patients, as compared to fluconazole (68%) and griseofulvin (38%) (p < 0.001). The mycological cure was recorded in 61/90 (68%) of patients with available data, at an average of 10 weeks. For patients with M. canis, griseofulvin and fluconazole were equally efficient (73% and 66%, respectively) (p = 0.44). Kerion was described in 36% and 14% of patients with T. tonsurans and M. canis, respectively, (p < 0.001). In conclusion, since 2019, there has been a significant increase in the prevalence of T. tonsurans, establishing this pathogen as the most common cause for tinea capitis in our population. Our data suggest that terbinafine is effective and presents high cure rates for tinea capitis in the pediatric population.

Analysis of optimal control strategies on the fungal Tinea capitis infection fractional order model with cost-effective analysis

“…It is often ignored but it accounts for 25–30% of all fungal infections and is common in developing countries especially in sub-Saharan Africa countries 13 , 14 . The Tinea capitis is a common children hair or scalp infection problem, and has been a worldwide public health concern and since it is a highly contagious infection and it has adverse events such as high economic burden, blood test follow-up, and significant cost of systemic treatments 1 , 15 . It predominantly occurs in rular or suburban regions and its common risk factors are poor hygiene, overcrowding, humidity, cultural habits, socioeconomic status and heat 2 , 15 , 20 .…”

“…The Tinea capitis is a common children hair or scalp infection problem, and has been a worldwide public health concern and since it is a highly contagious infection and it has adverse events such as high economic burden, blood test follow-up, and significant cost of systemic treatments 1 , 15 . It predominantly occurs in rular or suburban regions and its common risk factors are poor hygiene, overcrowding, humidity, cultural habits, socioeconomic status and heat 2 , 15 , 20 . Even though, it is not always possible to carry out the Tinea capitis infection test, the etiological diagnosis is depending on the patients’ clinical findings and confirmation based on the fungus growth in culture 17 .…”

Brote de tinea capitis tricofítica en un grupo de niños escolares en un área rural del departamento del Cauca, Colombia

“…En cuanto a su epidemiología, la tinea capitis afecta principalmente a los niños con edades entre los tres y los doce años, y está asociada con múltiples factores, como la falta de higiene personal, el hacinamiento, el bajo nivel socioeconómico, y las condiciones ambientales como el calor y la humedad 8 .…”

“…La prevalencia de la tinea capitis varía notablemente alrededor del mundo, desde menos del 1 % en España hasta más del 50 % en países africanos como Nigeria, Etiopía y Ghana 8 - 11 .…”

“…En el continente americano, Estados Unidos reporta que el 90 % de los casos de tinea capitis es causado por el dermatofito antropofílico T. tonsurans y se considera un trastorno endémico en escolares afroamericanos: 3 % presentan infección activa y 14 % son portadores asintomáticos 8 - 14 .…”