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educational purposes only. As with any medical matter, always
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information.
Fungal infection,
also called tinea, is an infectious mycosis of the skin,
due to a fungal intrusion of the skin, hair, or nails.
Common cases include hand-foot tinea, tinea corporis,
tinea cruris, tinea unguium, tinea capitis and tinea
versicolor. It has a high incidence rate in warm seasons
and warm areas.
(a) Hand- foot tinea: The skin lesion is in
most cases limited to the palm, sole, and between
the toes. It causes itching, burning, and stinging
sensations. The skin between the toes reddens,
cracks open, and crumbles. In extreme long-lasting
cases, the toenails may become infected, discolored,
and overgrown. The fungus may spread to underside of
foot, beneath the arch, producing groups of itching
blisters and peeling of the skin.
(b) Nail tinea (onychomycosis): It results
mainly from the spreading of hand-foot tinea. Its
clinical manifestations include thick growth of the
nail edge or the whole nail, with rough and uneven
surface, loss of luster, opaqueness of the nail and
the colour turning gray. The surrounding cuticle may
become red, tender, and swollen, and ooze pus if a
bacterial infection accompanies. It is also
manifested by crispness of the affected nail, which
is often incomplete or misshaped, but painless.
(c) Tinea corporis and Tinea cruris: Tinea on
the face, neck, torso or limbs is classified as
tinea corporis. Tinea cruris refers to those on the
inside surface of the upper end of the thigh,
including those, which spread to the genital organs
or buttocks. It is manifested by ring- shaped or
multi-ring-shaped erythemas with clear and prominent
boundaries, papular eruptions, vesicles (lesion
filled with clear fluid), scabs, which are mostly
near the boundaries. The affected area may be
extremely itchy.
(d) Tinea capitis: This is a kind of surface
mycosis on the scalp and hair, found mainly among
children. At first, there appear papular eruptions
on the hair follicles. These are covered with
grayish, or yellowish, or white scales. The scales
may join together, or spread separately. The
affected hair is dry and crisp, and gradually it
begins scaling off unevenly. Later, the hair
follicles become damaged, may result in permanent
scars. The scalp itches and smells. The course is
chronic.
It is
the treatment of choice for fungal infection. It has
been successfully used in Asia to treat fungal
infection. It can be used alone, or in conjunction with
other methods. However, the prevention is a very
important factor in the treatment process, because the
infection often relapses.
This ailment,
according to TCM, has different syndromes. The treatment for
these syndromes using herbal medicine and acupuncture is shown
below.
External treatment is the main treatment applied in
fungal infection diseases.
Syndrome (a)
Hand- foot tinea Lotion: Zhiyang Xiyao; or Qufeng Xiyao. Choose
one of those two formulas. Steam and cleanse the
affected part while the decoction is warm. Tincture: Apply the Fufan Tujingpi Ding to the
affected part. Acetum: Soak the affected part twice a day in
Huoxiang Cujing Ji.
Syndrome (b)
Nail tinea (onychomycosis) Acetum: Soak the affected part in Huoxiang Cujing
Ji twice a day. Lotion: Soak the affected part in the infusion
(formulated as below) twice a day, each time lasting
20-30 minutes. Ingredient:Herba Schizonepetae 18g, Radix
Ledebouriellae 18g Semen Hydoocapi 18g Spina Gleditsiae
15g Flos Persicae 15g Cortex Lycii Radicis 15g Alumen
12g Method:Soak the above ingredients in 1500
grams of white vinegar for seven days. Then it is ready
to use.
During the treatment, the softened portion of the
diseased nail should be gently scraped regularly with a
clean blade.
Syndrome (c)
Tinea corporis and Tinea cruris Tincture 1: Apply Fufang tujingpi Ding to
affected part two or three times daily. Tincture 2: Sock 60 grams of Radi et Rhizoma Rhei
(tudahuang) in 250 ml alcohol (density: 75%) for three
days before being filtered for external application, two
or three times daily.
Syndrome (d)
Tinea capitis Lotion: Wash the hair every day with the
decoction of 30 grams of Fructus Cnidii (shechuangzi).
Ointment: Apply Xunhuang ointment to affected
part twice daily.
Generally speaking, Qigong is good for healing
effect of this specific ailment, however
individual results may vary. It improves the
flow of the qi and the circulation of the blood,
so you'll experience more energy, but, you won't
see/ feel any immediate effects, as with many
exercises and therapies, it takes a few weeks or
even months of practice before you'll see any
significant improvements.
For the information of different types of Qigong
,just click a link above.
This information is for education purpose only.
We strongly advise you seek a licensed Qigong
master to learn the correct ways to conduct
these exercises before attempting them.
(b) Medicated diet
1) Coix seed (yiyiren) 50g, Atractylodes rhizome
(cangzhu) 10g, make soup to eat once a day.
2) Glabrous Greenbrier Rhizome(tufuling) 15g.
Decoct it and drink the soup as tea, one dose a
day, continue some days if necessary.
(c) Life style 1) Prevention of Hand and Foot Tinea:
Keep the feet and hands clean and dry,
especially during the hot summer months. Use
dusting and drying powder to keep the feet dry.
Separate your toes with small wads of cotton
when you are sleeping. Basins and towels for
foot washing and slippers, etc. should not be
exchanged. The shoes, socks should be frequently
changed, washed and dried in the blazing sun.
2) Prevention of Nail Tinea: Fingernails
and toenails should be dried thoroughly after
bathing. Footwear should be changed often if
feet tend to perspire. Thorough drying
eliminates the moisture that fungi thrive in.
3) Prevention of Tinea corporis and Tineacruris: Keep the body clean and dry,
especially during the hot weather. Bathing
towels and cloths should not be sheared with
someone who has fungal infection. 4) Prevention of Tinea Capitis: The hats,
pillows, and combs that have been used by the
patient must be sterilized before use again.
Tools and devices for hair cutting must be
strictly sterilized. The disease should be
treated as early as possible after discovery.
Acknowledgments:
Healthphone.com greatly acknowledges the support
and dedication of our
Healing Centre Panel, without whom this
section would not be possible.
We also greatly acknowedge Ms. Najaf Munir,
MBBS, for her editorial support. Ms. Munir
simplified the highly technical medical
documents into easy-to-read documents, for the
enjoyment and education of our numerous
visitors.
