Repositori URV

Identifier: TDX:497

Handle: https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11797/TDX497

Authors:
Fernández Torres, Belkys

Abstract:
Dermatophytes are molds that produce infections in the skin, hair and nails of humans and animals. They are usually restricted to the superficial layers of the skin and appendices but they can also affect the dermis and the subcutaneous tissue, thus causing granulomas or pseudomycetomas.Some health science professionals regard dermatophytes as a merely cosmetic problem. The real impact of these infections on the quality of life of the patients involved, however, is considerable. Patients suffering from dermatophyte infections are affected physically since they feel pain, pruritus and discomfort. They may also be affected socially, being regarded by others as lacking basic personal hygiene or as potential sources of infection. And patients who work in the food industry or in other professions where they come into contact with the public may see their careers conditioned or even truncated. These problems are exacerbated in patients suffering from chronic dermatophytoses such as onychomycosis or tinea pedis. In the case of onychomycosis, treatment failure can be as high as 25%. In the case of tinea pedis, especially moccasin-type tinea pedis, the infection may last for years and the frequency of recurrence is as high as 70%.As the treatment of dermatophytoses tends to be prolonged (since the infection is usually chronic), and as the available treatments are not very effective anyway, antifungal drug consumption and public health expenditure are high. In Spain, for example, the annual consumption of topical antifungals involves a cost of approximately 36 million euros and the consumption of systemic antifungals approximately 27,000 euros.To alleviate this problem, new antifungals are being developed. This has generated interest in testing the susceptibility of dermatophytes