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Athlete's foot - Symptom

Alternative Names

Tinea pedis; Fungal infection - feet; Tinea of the foot; Infection - fungal - feet; Ringworm - foot

Symptoms:

The most common symptom is cracked, flaking, peeling skin between the toes. The affected area is usually red and itchy. You may feel burning or stinging, and there may be blisters, oozing, or crusting. In addition to the toes, the symptoms can also occur on the heels, palms, and between the fingers.

If the fungus spreads to your nails, they can become discolored, thick, and even crumble.

Signs and tests:

The diagnosis is based primarily on the appearance of your skin. If tests are performed, they may include:

Skin culture (fungi from flecks of skin are able to grow in the lab)
Skin lesion biopsy (examination may show fungus under the microscope)
Skin lesion KOH exam (skin scrapings in KOH show fungus under the microscope)

Athlete's foot, tinea pedis

Reviewed last on: 4/12/2007
Kevin Berman, MD, PhD, Associate, Atlanta Center for Dermatologic Disease, Atlanta, GA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.

References

Habif, TP. Clinical Dermatology. 4th ed. St. Louis: Mosby; 2004.

Long SS, Pickering LK, Prober CG, eds. Principles and Practice of Pediatric Infectious Diseases. 2nd ed. New York, NY: Elsevier, 2003.

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