Tinea capitis an endemic disease in Madras

A study of Tinea capitis in Outpatient Clinic, Skin Department, Government General Hospital, Madras during a three year period from November, 1973 to October, 1976, has shown a gradual increase in incidence of 3.56%, 5.09% and 6.25% respectively. Findings suggest that Tinea capitis is endemic in South India. Male children were more commonly affected than female children and the age groups chiefly affected were between 5 and 10 years. A considerably number of adults were also affected. The disease showed no correlation to environmental temperature, humidity and rainfall but was correlated to all types of mycoses and total incidence of mycoses. Among 357 isolates, Trichophyton violaceum was the commonest in 264 (73.94%) and T. tonsurans was the next common in 47 (13.16%). The other agents were T. rubrum in 30 (8.4%), T. mentagrophytes in 11 (3.08%) and T. simii in 5 (1.4%). Noninflammatory lesions were more common than inflammatory lesions and both were produced by T. violaceum and T. tonsurans, suggesting strain differences in pathogenesis. Treatment with oral griseofulvin was satisfactory in all but had to be discontinued in 4 patients due to side effects.