Fungal diseases of the skin and nails belong to the group of infectious diseases of humans caused by disease-causing fungi. Fungal infections (mycoses) are different. There are very serious forms of infection with high mortality rates. However, not many people suffer from them. Nails with mycosis are not among them and it is impossible to die directly. But fungal infections of the skin and nails are one of the most common fungal diseases. It is an infectious disease that spreads from person to person.
What does a nail fungus look like?
Many people do not pay attention to the changes in the nail plates, often these changes are seen as a consequence of trauma or age specifics. Fungal nail diseases have many manifestations. But there are usually three main manifestations of nail changes associated with fungal disease: discoloration, thickening, crumbling, or destruction of the nail plate.
Mushrooms or not mushrooms?
So you may notice some changes in your skin or nail plates. It remains to be decided whether it is a mushroom or not.
A lot of non-fungal diseases of the skin and nails - hundreds of names. However, according to statistics, every second nail disease is fungal. That is, if your nails are changed, the chance of nail fungus occurring is 50%, regardless of any manifestation and factor. But what about foot skin disease? The same laws of probability are followed. That is, most of the skin lesions are fungal. Keep in mind that the untreated fungus on the skin of the foot will sooner or later become a nail fungus. And it’s not that easy to get rid of nail fungus. Don't be fooled. If you suspect you have skin or nail disease, consult your mycologist.
Although most nail changes prove to be fungal, the other nature of these changes must also be considered. Chronic nail trauma should be highlighted here. Nail changes can occur with some common skin conditions, internal infectious diseases, nervous, endocrine, cardiovascular lesions, various poisonings, and dystrophy. Finally, nail changes can be innate. These nail lesions are externally similar to fungal infections, but they are not. Treatment with antifungal drugs against non-fungal nail diseases will of course not be successful. This is another reason to consult a mycologist and not try to heal due to nail changes.
Can you recognize a nail fungus yourself?
No, you don't know! And no professional doctor, no matter how experienced, undertakes to treat a fungal disease without confirming the diagnosis in the laboratory, even if the legs have the most characteristic signs of the fungus. Laboratory certification is a prerequisite for all fungal diseases. Simply put, if a laboratory finds a fungus in a skin plate or a nail piece taken for analysis, it is a fungal disease.
Dilemma: fungus treatment or not treatment?
Some people have doubts about whether nail fungus treatment is worth it at all. Many argue, does treating a fungal disease require money? Need. How long does the treatment last? Maybe for a long time. Then why do you really have to bother with treating mycosis? Doesn’t matter if the nails are interchanged because they can finally be hidden. . .
Is this toy worth the candle? Why do you need mycosis treatment? Let's try to understand this question. . . Once started, the fungal infection will not go anywhere until the fungus is destroyed. The fungi are very hardy and can survive for months on fallen skin scales. So what can a mushroom hiding in its nails expect? First, the fungal cells enter the skin, become fixed, multiply and spread on it, and then enter the nail under favorable conditions. Over time, the fungus affects all parts of the nail and spreads to other nails or skin. Nail fungus is a hotbed and source of infection for other parts of the body. Even if all the foci of the fungus on the skin of the foot or torso have been cured, the remaining foci of infection of the nails will re-infect.
Fungal nail diseases impair the quality of life. Research by the National Academy of Mycology has shown that the presence of nail fungus or foot mycosis significantly impairs quality of life - a set of indicators of people’s emotional, mental and social well-being. It turned out that in the case of fungal nail disease, the quality of life decreases on average to 50–55% of the total value typical of a healthy person. However, patients not only observed physical discomfort associated with thickening or destruction of nails, but also experienced a variety of experiences, fears, and negative emotions. It has been found that nail fungus severely restricts human activity, interferes with rest, sports, and communication with other people. Moreover, discomfort and shame due to the condition of the nails sometimes prevented them from seeing a doctor in time. The longer the disease lasted, the more severe the nail fungus became and the worse the quality of life.
In addition to reducing the quality of life, the fungus leads to certain health problems. The first and foremost health problem caused by the presence of nail mycosis is the fungus itself - a chronic infectious disease that constantly destroys nails and threatens to spread to people around them, especially sick family members. . The presence of a fungal relative is otherwise noted by at least 1/3 of patients with nail damage. According to medical statistics and epidemiological studies, the presence of fungal nail disease in Russia is expected in almost one in five adults. However, over the past 10 years, the incidence has increased 2. 5-fold. A further increase in incidence is expected. However, the likelihood of the fungus being present increases with age: about twice every 10 years.
Untreated nail mycosis and foot mycosis are considered to be the entrance gates to other infectious diseases, such as bacterial erysipelas. Fungal nail infection significantly complicates the course of diabetes mellitus and can lead to serious complications.
It is possible for the human body to be allergic to a fungal infection - the fungus, as an allergen, develops hypersensitivity, i. e. a fungal allergy. It is possible to develop or worsen diseases such as bronchial asthma, allergic dermatitis, various skin rashes and reactions.
In very rare cases, against the background of immune deficiency, untreated nail fungus has led to the development of deep mycosis - germination or intrusion of the fungus with blood into internal organs, which has resulted in death. Fortunately, most modern nail fungus patients do not have this result. But even if you completely rule out their possibility, you can’t leave nail fungal disease untreated. It is impossible not to treat scabies, head lice and other infectious diseases. If you suspect nail fungus, we recommend that you see a doctor as soon as possible.
While we were thinking this way, the mushroom in someone’s fingernail could have progressed by millimeter fragments. This is his job, a so-called small business. The mushroom does this continuously, day in and day out. The sum of days is weeks, weeks are months, months are years. Over the years, the disease worsens if the fungus is not treated. One recent study showed that every 5 years, the severity of onichomycosis increases by several points on a special scale. This means that the new nails are affected by the fungus, and in each of them the area affected and the degree of thickening increases. This means that the negative effects of mycosis on health and quality of life will be stronger. This is a proven fact. But that's not all. The more severe the fungal infection of the nail, the more difficult it is to treat. If antifungal varnish or nail solution can help in the early stages of infection, you cannot give up antifungal tablets after a few years. The longer the illness lasts, the longer you need to take them (and buy even more). And after ten to twenty years, usually just removing the nail plate, plus these funds will help.
See your doctor as soon as possible. It delays the fungus every year, extends the required treatment and observation period, adds large doses of drugs, and performs the necessary processing of nails. Don’t make a big mistake - don’t take systemic medications alone! If fungal diseases of the nails did not cause the changes mentioned above, then the treatment of the fungus would really only be a matter of attitude to appearance. We then put healthy nails on the same list, with white teeth, clean skin and a bad smell. And the cost of treating mycosis sounds like this: are you willing to give money to take back your uneaten, thickened, and unwanted nails? However, the issue is not the only one. Are you willing to pay to protect your family from foot fungus? Do you want to regain your previous quality of life? Can you stop the spread of the infection today?