Tinea Versicolor Diagnosis

What is Tinea Versicolor?

A doctor’s evaluation is the best way to confirm a tinea versicolor infection. It is a relatively common condition.  Two to eight percent of the United States population has tinea versicolor disease.  This skin disease frequently affects adolescents and young adults, especially in warm humid climates.  It is thought that the yeast feeds on skin oils and dead skin cells.  Infections are found more often in people who have dandruff and hyperhidrosis.

Diagnoses for Tinea versicolor

Diagnosis is usually based on a medical history and physical examination. The patches or spots that appear with this condition are distinctive, and usually allow the diagnosis to be made on physical examination.  Physicians may use an ultraviolet light to examine the patches more clearly. Under the light yeast types in the Malassezia group may glow yellow-green.  Another common practice in tinea versicolor treatment is for the physician to do skin scrapings of the lesions to help confirm the tinea versicolor diagnosis.

For someone who has received a tinea versicolor diagnosis the infection is easily treated with a variety of things like skin creams, shampoos, or solutions. If the infection is severe or if it envelops large areas of your body, is recurring, or does not ease with skin care, the doctor may prescribe antifungal pills.  People with liver or heart problems cannot take antifungal pills.  Blood tests may have to be done so the doctor can check to make sure your kidneys and liver are functioning properly.

Tinea Versicolor Treatment

Tinea versicolor treatment kills the fungi quickly, but it can take months for the spots to abate and for your skin color to return to normal.  Tinea versicolor treatment can last days or weeks, depending on how the rash reacts. For six months after the first tinea versicolor treatment, a person may be advised to apply topical treatments occasionally or take one or more doses of oral antifungal medicine to help prevent the rash from returning.

Doctors often recommend that bed linens and pajamas be washed daily during the tinea versicolor treatment to avoid re-infection. Some experts do advise boiling or discarding contaminated clothing if the rash is unshakable to prevent tinea versicolor.  It is believed to be a more certain way to eliminate the yeast during the tinea versicolor treatment.

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Specific treatment will be determined by a physician’s positive tinea versicolor diagnosis. He or she will take into consideration factors like a person’s age, overall health, and medical history and extent of the condition.  Their tolerance for specific medications, procedures, or therapies, expectations for the course of the condition and your opinion or preference will also come into play.Tinea Versicolor must be treated.