Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2024 Jul;67(7):e13760.
doi: 10.1111/myc.13760.

Exploring treatment and antifungal resistance in an outbreak of tinea caused by Microsporum audouinii

Affiliations

Exploring treatment and antifungal resistance in an outbreak of tinea caused by Microsporum audouinii

Claus Dall Johansen et al. Mycoses. 2024 Jul.

Abstract

Background: Microsporum audouinii has resurged recently. Infections with the dermatophyte are difficult to treat, which raises the question if we treat M. audouinii infections with the most effective antifungal (AF) agent.

Objectives: The aims of this study was to investigate an outbreak of tinea capitis (TC) in Denmark, address the challenges in outbreak management and to conduct two reviews regarding previous outbreaks and minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC).

Methods: We used Wood's light, culture, direct microscopy, and PCR for screening and antifungal susceptibility testing (AFST) for treatment optimization. We performed two reviews to explore M. audouinii outbreaks and MIC values using broth microdilution method.

Results: Of 73 screened individuals, 10 had confirmed M. audouinii infections. Clinical resistance to griseofulvin was observed in 4 (66%) cases. While previous outbreaks showed high griseofulvin efficacy, our study favoured terbinafine, fluconazole and itraconazole in our hard-to-treat cases. AFST guided the choice of AF. Through the literature search, we identified five M. audouinii outbreaks, where differences in management included the use of Wood's light and prophylactic topical AF therapy. Terbinafine MIC values from the literature ranged from 0.002 to 0.125 mg/L.

Conclusion: Use of Wood's light and preventive measurements were important for limiting infection. The literature lacked MIC data for griseofulvin against M. audouinii, but indicated sensitivity for terbinafine. The clinical efficacy for M. audouinii treatment was contradictory favouring both terbinafine and griseofulvin. AFST could have a key role in the treatment of difficult cases, but lack of standardisation of AFST and MIC breakpoints limits its usefulness.

Keywords: antifungal drug resistance; disease outbreak; microsporum; mycoses; tinea; tinea capitis.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

REFERENCES

    1. Elewski BE. Tinea capitis: a current perspective. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2000;42(1 Pt 1) 1–20; quiz 21:1‐20. doi:10.1016/s0190-9622(00)90001-x
    1. Rodríguez‐Cerdeira C, Martínez‐Herrera E, Szepietowski JC, et al. A systematic review of worldwide data on tinea capitis: analysis of the last 20 years. J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol. 2021;35(4):844‐883. doi:10.1111/JDV.16951
    1. Babel DE, Rogers AL, Beneke ES. Dermatophytosis of the scalp: incidence, immune response, and epidemiology. Mycopathologia. 1990;109(2):69‐73. doi:10.1007/BF00436787
    1. Ginter‐Hanselmayer G, Weger W, Ilkit M, Smolle J. Epidemiology of tinea capitis in Europe: current state and changing patterns. Mycoses. 2007;50:6‐13. doi:10.1111/j.1439-0507.2007.01424.x
    1. Seebacher C, Bouchara JP, Mignon B. Updates on the epidemiology of dermatophyte infections. Mycopathologia. 2008;166(5–6):335‐352. doi:10.1007/S11046-008-9100-9/TABLES/6

MeSH terms

LinkOut - more resources

-