Yeast Infection | Johns Hopkins Medicine

What is a yeast infection?

Yeast is a fungus normally found on your skin. It’s also found in your digestive system. If you’re a woman, you also have yeast in your vaginal area. When too much yeast grows on your skin or other areas, it can cause an infection. This infection is also called candidiasis.

What causes a yeast infection?

A yeast infection can happen if your skin gets damaged. Yeast can also “overgrow” in warm or humid conditions. An infection can also happen if you have a weak immune system. Taking antibiotics can also cause an overgrowth of yeast. That’s because antibiotics kill the healthy bacteria in your body that normally keep the yeast in balance.

What are the risk factors for yeast infection?

Anyone can get a yeast infection. Those at higher risk for it include:

• Infants
• People who wear dentures
• People taking antibiotics
• People getting cancer treatment
• People with other health conditions, such as HIV or diabetes

What are the symptoms of a yeast infection?

The symptoms of a yeast infection depend on where it is located in the body. The chart below shows the most common symptoms of a yeast infection. But yours may be slightly different.

The symptoms of a yeast infection may look like other skin conditions. Always see your healthcare provider for a diagnosis.

How is yeast infection diagnosed?

Your healthcare provider will ask about your symptoms and medical history. He or she will also give you a physical exam. He or she may scrape off a bit of skin or remove part of a nail and examine it to confirm the diagnosis.

How is yeast infection treated?

Your healthcare provider will consider your age, overall health, how widespread the infection is and other factors to determine your treatment.

Yeast infections can be easily treated with ointments or other anti-yeast (antifungal) creams.

• Yeast infections of the vagina or penis can be treated with creams or medicated suppositories. Sometimes an oral anti-yeast medicine is used.
• Yeast infection in the mouth (thrush) may be treated with a medicated mouthwash. Or it may be treated with lozenges that dissolve in the mouth.
• If you have a severe infection and have a weak immune system, you may need to take an oral anti-yeast medicine.
• Esophageal yeast infections are usually treated with oral or intravenous anti-yeast medicines.
• Yeast infections of the nails are treated with an oral anti-yeast medicine.
• Yeast infections in the skin folds can be treated with anti-yeast powders.

Can a yeast infection be prevented?

You can prevent some yeast infections by doing these things:

• Use good oral hygiene to help prevent yeast infection in your mouth (thrush). This includes brushing and flossing your teeth every day and using mouthwash as needed.
• Wear cotton underwear to help to prevent a vaginal or genital yeast infection. If you are a woman and get vaginal yeast infections often, you may want to take probiotics.
• Keep areas where skin rubs up against skin dry and try to reduce friction.

When should I call my healthcare provider?

If you get symptoms of infection, such as warm, reddened skin or drainage, tell your healthcare provider. A secondary bacterial infection can happen, so monitor for spreading redness, or swelling, or pain.

Key points about yeast infection

• Yeast infection is caused by yeast on the skin or mucous membranes.
• The symptoms of a yeast infection depend on where it happens on your body. Common symptoms are a rash, white discharge, or itching.
• Yeast infections are treated with medicated ointments or other anti-yeast (antifungal) preparations.

Next steps

Tips to help you get the most from a visit to your healthcare provider:

• Know the reason for your visit and what you want to happen.
• Before your visit, write down questions you want answered.
• Bring someone with you to help you ask questions and remember what your provider tells you.
• At the visit, write down the name of a new diagnosis, and any new medicines, treatments, or tests. Also write down any new instructions your provider gives you.
• Know why a new medicine or treatment is prescribed, and how it will help you. Also know what the side effects are.
• Ask if your condition can be treated in other ways.
• Know why a test or procedure is recommended and what the results could mean.
• Know what to expect if you do not take the medicine or have the test or procedure.
• If you have a follow-up appointment, write down the date, time, and purpose for that visit.
• Know how you can contact your provider if you have questions.

Symptoms, Types, Causes, and Treatments

Written by WebMD Editorial Contributors

• What Is a Fungal Infection?
• Fungal Infection Symptoms
• Types of Fungal Infections
• Athlete’s Foot
• Jock Itch
• Ringworm
• Yeast Infections
• More

A fungal infection, also called mycosis, is a skin disease caused by a fungus.

There are millions of species of fungi. They live in the dirt, on plants, on household surfaces, and on your skin. Sometimes, they can lead to skin problems like rashes or bumps.

A fungal skin infection might cause:

• Irritation
• Scaly skin
• Redness
• Itching
• Swelling
• Blisters

Fungal skin infections can happen anywhere on your body. Some of the most common are athlete’s foot, jock itch, ringworm, and yeast infections.

Athlete’s foot, also called tinea pedis, is a fungal infection of your foot.

The fungi grow best in warm, moist places such as shoes, socks, swimming pools, locker rooms, and public showers. They’re often found in the summer and in hot, humid climates. It happens more often in people who wear tight shoes, who don’t change their sweaty socks, and who use public baths and pools.

Athlete’s foot causes

The fungi behind athlete’s foot live on the dead tissue of your hair, toenails, and outer skin layers. At least four kinds of fungus can cause the infection. The most common is Trichophyton rubrum.

Athlete’s foot symptoms

Signs of athlete’s foot vary from person to person. You might have:

• Peeling, cracking, and scaly feet
• Blisters
• Skin that’s red, softened, or broken down
• Itching
• Burning

Types of athlete’s foot

• Interdigital.  This is also called toe web infection. Most people with athlete’s foot have this form. It usually occurs between your two smallest toes. The infection can spread to the sole of your foot.
• Moccasin. This form can begin with irritation, dryness, itching, or scaly skin. Over time, your skin may thicken and crack. This infection can involve your entire sole and extend onto the sides of your foot.
• Vesicular. This is the rarest kind of athlete’s foot. It usually begins with a sudden outbreak of fluid-filled blisters, often on the underside of your foot. They also can appear between your toes, on your heel, or on top of your foot.

Athlete’s foot diagnosis

Not all itchy, scaly feet are caused by a fungus. Your doctor may scrape off a bit of skin and look at it under a microscope to check for a different condition.

Athlete’s foot treatment

Your doctor might give you antifungal medicine to put on your skin or, in severe cases, another kind to take by mouth. Be sure to keep your feet clean and dry.

Athlete’s foot prevention

To keep from getting athlete’s foot, wear shower sandals in public showering areas, wear shoes that let your feet breathe, and wash your feet every day with soap and water. Dry them thoroughly, and use a quality foot powder.

A type of fungus called tinea causes jock itch. The infection is also known as tinea cruris. Tinea loves warm, moist areas like your genitals, inner thighs, and buttocks. Infections happen more often in the summer or in warm, wet climates.

Jock itch is a red, itchy rash that’s often ring-shaped.

Is jock itch contagious?

It’s only mildly contagious. It can spread from person to person through direct contact or indirectly through objects with the fungus on them.

Jock itch symptoms

Symptoms of jock itch include:

• Itching, chafing, or burning on your groin or thigh
• A red, circular, rash with raised edges
• Redness on your groin or thigh
• Flaking, peeling, or cracking skin

Jock itch diagnosis

Doctors can usually diagnose it by what it looks like and where it is on your body. They might look at a sample of skin under a microscope to be sure.

Jock itch treatment

Keep the affected area clean and dry. Over-the-counter antifungal medicines can treat most cases of jock itch. In severe cases, your doctor might need to give you a prescription cream. No matter your treatment, be sure to:

• Wash and dry the area with a clean towel
• Use the antifungal medicine as directed
• Change clothes — especially your underwear — every day

Ringworm, also called tinea corporis, isn’t a worm but a fungal skin infection.  It’s named for its ring-shaped rash with a winding, worm-like edge.

Is ringworm contagious?

Ringworm can spread through direct contact with infected people or animals. You can also pick it up off clothing or furniture. Heat and humidity can help spread the infection.

Ringworm symptoms

Ringworm is a red, circular, flat sore that can happen along with scaly skin. The outer part of the sore might be raised while the skin in the middle appears normal. Patches or red rings may overlap.

Ringworm diagnosis

Your doctor can diagnose ringworm based on your symptoms. They might ask whether you’ve come into contact with infected people or animals. They might also take samples from the area and look at them under a microscope to be sure.

Ringworm treatment

Treatment usually involves antifungal medications that you put on your skin. You might use an over-the-counter cream such as:

• Clotrimazole (Lotrimin, Mycelex)
• Miconazole (Micatin, Monistat-Derm)
• Terbinafine (Lamisil)

In more severe cases, you might need prescription medications to put on your skin or take by mouth.

Yeast infections of your skin are called cutaneous candidiasis. A type of fungus called candida causes these infections when it grows too much. Yeast infections aren’t contagious.

The infections are most common in warm, moist, creased areas of your body, including your armpits and groin. They often happen in people who are obese or who have diabetes. People taking antibiotics are also at higher risk.

Candida can cause diaper rash in infants. It can also cause infections in your nails, vagina, or mouth (oral thrush).

Yeast infection symptoms

Signs of a yeast infection on your skin include:

• Rash
• Patches that ooze clear fluid
• Pimple-like bumps
• Itching
• Burning

Signs of a yeast infection in your nail beds include:

• Swelling
• Pain
• Pus
• A white or yellow nail that separates from the nail bed

Signs of thrush (yeast infection of your mouth) include:

• White patches on your tongue and inside your cheeks
• Pain

Signs of a vaginal yeast infection include:

• White or yellow discharge from your vagina
• Itching
• Redness in the external area of your vagina
• Burning

Yeast infection diagnosis

Your doctor will ask about your medical history and do a physical exam. They might also take a sample from the affected area to look at under a microscope.

Yeast infection treatment

Treatment depends on the infection. Medicated creams can treat most skin yeast infections. For a vaginal infection, you can usually use medicated suppositories. A medicated mouthwash or lozenges that dissolve in your mouth may treat oral thrush. If you have a severe infection or a weakened immune system, you might need anti-yeast medications that you take by mouth.

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Skin fungus – health articles

11/10/2022

Skin fungus (mycosis) is a common fungal disease that is caused by parasitic, pathogenic fungi. The type of fungus that has entered the human body determines the nature of the course of the disease. There are skin fungus, foot fungus, hair fungus.

Types and symptoms of skin fungus

Keratomycosis

. Usually proceed without itching and inflammation. Caused by fungi living in the superficial layers of the skin and the stratum corneum of the hair. In this group, the most common skin diseases are versicolor versicolor.

Dermatophytosis

. These fungi live in the deeper layers of the skin and cause inflammation at the site of localization. These include diseases such as trichophytosis, epidermophytosis, microsporia, rubrophytosis and scab. Epidermophytosis – a fungus settles in the skin of the interdigital folds of the feet and soles, causing peeling. Then bubbles appear, which open up and form painful, itchy, weeping, inflamed areas. Then all manifestations disappear, and the disease passes into a chronic stage with an exacerbation in the warmer season. Over time, the nails fade, yellow spots appear and a thickening of the nail plate appears. With trichophytosis, this disease is also called ringworm, skin, nails and hair are affected. Infection is possible through personal contact with sick people and animals, and after a week a rapidly growing, scaly red spot appears.

Yeast infections

, or candidiasis, are caused by fungi of the genus Candida. These yeasts are usually present on the surface of the skin, but under favorable circumstances, they begin to overgrow. There is redness, peeling, itching, rash. Most often, this infection affects the armpits, groin, and skin folds at the flexion points. People who are obese, diabetic, and taking antibiotics are especially susceptible to Candida infection.

Deep mycoses

. They affect the skin and subcutaneous tissue, as well as internal organs and cause inflammation in them. These diseases are much less common and their treatment is more serious and lengthy.

Prolonged exposure to the fungus has a negative effect on the entire body. Toxins released during the life of the fungus have a general toxic effect, as a result of which bacterial and viral complications, drug intolerance, and exacerbation of chronic diseases can occur. Therefore, if the symptoms described above appear, you should definitely consult a doctor.

Causes

– insufficient adherence to personal hygiene rules
– various skin injuries
– decreased immunity
– metabolic disorders, endocrine diseases (diabetes mellitus, diseases of the thyroid gland and adrenal glands)
– gastrointestinal diseases associated with impaired digestion and insufficient absorption of nutrients
– uncontrolled and prolonged use of antibiotics, the use of certain drugs, including oral contraceptives and corticosteroids
– constant stress and long-term lack of rest
– smoking and alcohol abuse.

Diagnosis and treatment

To successfully cure a skin fungus, it is necessary to accurately determine the type of fungus using a laboratory test. The doctor takes into account not only the type of fungus and the degree of spread of the focus of the disease, the degree of inflammation, but the effectiveness and safety of the drug individually for each patient. The duration of treatment is also controlled depending on the location of the infection and the severity of the disease.

Treatment of skin fungus includes: applying creams, ointments, aerosols, taking immunostimulating drugs.

Prevention of skin fungus:

– immediate treatment of acute diseases and planned treatment of chronic diseases of internal organs
– proper and healthy nutrition, additional intake of vitamins and minerals
– prevention of skin and nail injuries
– wearing only personal shoes in the pool and sauna
– using only your own clothes, shoes and underwear

Considering the factors contributing to the development of fungal infection and the prevention of skin fungus, please note that a healthy lifestyle plays an important role.

types and diagnostics — “Sensitive”

Yeast fungus is one of the types of mycosis that affects the skin, as well as mucous membranes, nails. Pathogenic yeast for quite a long time does not manifest itself in any way when it enters the human body. In order for the first symptoms to appear, provoking factors are required. So, for example, a cold, an infection can provoke increased growth and division of Candida fungi, and this already causes the appearance of obvious symptoms that cause discomfort.

The following stimulating factors are involved in the activation of cell division of the fungus

• Prolonged wearing of tight-fitting synthetic underwear
• Being overweight;
• Constant use of hygiene and care products with harmful additives,
• Abuse of sweet foods,
• Treatment with immunosuppressants or immunomodulators;
• Pathologies that suppress the immune system;
• Sudden change in hormonal levels;
• High blood sugar;
• Abuse of steroid drugs;
• Treatment with strong antibiotics.

Yeast fungus localization and symptoms

Yeast fungi can be localized on different parts of the body, scrapings from the mucous membranes, from the skin are taken for diagnosis, feces are analyzed, and the material of the nail plates is analyzed. The fungus can be localized:

1. On the genitourinary organs: localization on the mucous membranes of the genital organs causes thrush, which is called urogenital. The external genital organs suffer, in women the nipples also.
2. Oral cavity: most often the fungus affects the child, and can be expressed in diseases such as candidiasis seizures; candidal cheilitis; candidiasis stomatitis; candida glossitis. A fungus that affects the entire oral cavity is called oropharyngeal candidiasis.
3. Nails and periungual tissues: more common in men, and can be expressed in such forms as: lateral; distal; proximal; total. The complexity of the treatment of this fungus lies in the fact that the fungus affects most of the nail tissue, which leads to its death.
4. Internal organs: the rarest and most dangerous form of the disease, which can be expressed in several forms: candidal endocarditis; gastric candidiasis; candidal meningitis; candidiasis of different parts of the intestine; pulmonary candidiasis; candidiasis of the urinary system; candidiasis of the ears and eyes.

If the fungus is localized on the extremities, then the first symptoms are the appearance of cracks that cause pain and discomfort. Crimson spots, calluses appear, which eventually transform into erosion.

Fungus of the nail plate is manifested by the fact that its color changes to purple, green or black, and if treatment is not started, the entire nail plate is destroyed. On the skin, yeast fungus is manifested by redness and peeling with slight itching. On the scalp, the fungus is also manifested by peeling, itching and dandruff. The defeat of the mucous membranes is expressed by redness, the formation of a white coating, and if the genitals are affected, then discharge with a bad smell begins.