Tinea faciei in a central Portuguese hospital: A 9-year survey

Summary

Tinea faciei is a relatively uncommon dermatophytosis that affects the glabrous skin of the face. The aim of this study was to analyse the epidemiologic, clinical and mycological features of tinea faciei cases diagnosed at the Dermatology and Venereology Department of Hospital Santo António dos Capuchos (Lisbon, Portugal). Consecutive cases diagnosed between 2008 and 2016 were studied retrospectively. A total of 72 tinea faciei cases have been diagnosed, involving 37 male and 35 female, aged between 8 months and 86 years. The majority were observed in patients younger than 12 years of age (59.72%). Anthropophilic isolates (mainly Microsporum audouinii, Trichophyton soudanense and Trichophyton rubrum) accounted for 75.7% of the identified dermatophytes. One quarter of the patients were also affected by dermatophytosis in other areas, such as the scalp. Only 10 cases were previously treated with topical steroids due to misdiagnosis. Most patients were treated with topical and systemic antifungal therapy with total resolution of skin lesions, without relapse or side effects. In contrast to other European studies, anthropophilic dermatophytes were the main causative agents of tinea faciei. As previously described to tinea capitis, this result is probably due to changes in the epidemiology of dermatophytes worldwide.