Ringworm is one of the most common forms of skin disease prevalent among the human population .the most important factor behind it is that it is easily communicable from one person to another. You would never know from whom you might have contacted the disease..
As the name implies ringworm looks exactly like a ring on the surface of the skin .however the ring is not exactly a circle and takes irregular shapes. As the ringworm is caused by fungus and it is highly communicable so it can affect many areas at a time. So you can see the rings at many places of the body at a time. for example you can have ring formation at many places at a single time including your scalp (Tinea capitis), groin area (Tinea cruris or also known as jock itch), or feet (Tinea pedis or athlete's foot).
Initially the rash is in the form of a dry raised patch that appears red and feels itchy. The inner areas look pale while the outer ring is red in color and quite scaly. Ringworm normally becomes visible within ten to fifteen days of infection. These symptoms of ringworms are easily recognizable however they look slight different from person to person.
Also one of the most fool proof solution is using laboratory analysis. Take the sample of the scaly layers from the infected region and put it into a solution of potassium hydroxide solutions. Now heat the solution gently so that the skin gets melted but the fungus cells don’t. If it is actually infected by ring worm you can actually see the fungal cells using a microscope.
However if your nails are infected you would not see the common ring worm symptoms. There would be no ring formation on your nails. They in fact become discolored thick and might even crumble down. |