Athlete's Foot - Symptoms, Causes

Athlete's foot is a common fungal infection that affects many people at some time in their lives. The condition easily spreads in public places such as communal showers, locker rooms and fitness centers.

Athlete's foot usually affects the spaces between your toes, but it can spread to your toenails and the soles and sides of your feet. Often, athlete's foot responds well to over-the-counter (nonprescription) treatments you can apply to your skin. More severe cases may require prescription medications.

Athlete's foot (tinea pedis) is a common persistent infection of the foot caused by a microscopic fungus that lives on dead tissue of the hair, toenails, and outer skin layers (dermatophyte). These fungi thrive in warm, dark, moist environments such as shoes, stockings, and the floors of public showers, locker rooms, and swimming pools.

Athlete's foot is transmitted through contact with a cut or abrasion on the bottom (plantar surface) of the foot. In rare cases, the fungus is transmitted from infected animals to humans.

What causes athlete's foot?
Athlete's foot is caused by a fungus that grows on or in the top layer of skin. Fungi (plural of fungus) grow best in warm, wet places, such as the area between the toes.

Athlete's foot spreads easily. You can get it by touching the toes or feet of a person who has it. But most often, people get it by walking barefoot near swimming pools or in locker rooms. The fungi then grow in your shoes, especially if your shoes are so tight that air cannot move around your feet.

Symptoms
The signs of athlete's foot, singly or combined, are dry skin, itching, scaling, inflammation, and blisters. Blisters often lead to cracking of the skin. When blisters break, small raw areas of tissue are exposed, causing pain and swelling. Itching and burning may increase as the infection spreads.

Athlete's foot may spread to the soles of the feet and to the toenails. It can be spread to other parts of the body, notably the groin and underarms, by those who scratch the infection and then touch themselves elsewhere.

What does athlete's foot look like?
Athlete's foot may look like red, peeling, dry skin areas on one or both soles of the feet. Sometimes the dry flakes may spread onto the sides and tops of the feet. Most commonly the rash is localized to just the soles of the feet. The space between the fourth and fifth toes also may have some moisture, peeling, and dry flakes.

There are three common types of athlete's foot.

1. soles of the feet, also called "moccasin" type
2. between the toes, also called "interdigital" type
3. inflammatory type or blistering

What can be done at home?

Wash the feet every day and allow them to dry properly before putting on shoes and socks. You should use a separate towel to dry your feet. To avoid passing the infection on you should not share these towels with anyone else. Wear socks made of cotton or wool, and change them at least twice a day or when they have become damp.
Avoid wearing shoes which are made of synthetic materials. Wear sandals or leather shoes instead.
Powder the feet and the inside of the shoes with an antifungal powder.

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