Since more than 20% of the world's population is currently infected with fungus on the feet and sometimes on the hands, many know how unpleasant this disease is and what consequences it brings. However, not everyone is familiar with the information about which microorganisms cause this disease and which types of nail fungus exist.
In addition to the forms of the disease, its specific features and treatment methods, it would be useful to know how many different types of fungus lead to the destruction of nails and damage to different areas of the feet and hands.
Causes of the disease and its symptoms
With the causes of the disease, everything can be quite complicated, since a person is easily infected by a fungus, both due to the weakness of his body and the fact that he is exposed to constant contact with infected people or objects.
At the moment, the main causes of the disease are:
- Visit to saunas, showers and public pools;
- Increased sweating of the feet;
- Using someone else's shoes or hygiene products;
- Weak immunity and so on.
Manifestations of fungi in the affected areas include the following symptoms:
- The formation of scales on the skin of the feet and nails;
- Peeling and itching of the skin;
- The appearance of cracks;
- Thickening of infected skin and nails;
- Changes in nail color;
- Destruction of the nail structure.
Important!
In any case, toenail fungus and any other form of its manifestation cause a lot of trouble, and therefore it is worth dealing with the prevention and treatment of the disease in a timely manner.
Forms and types of the disease
In this case, everything is quite complicated, since the types of fungal nail diseases are distributed according to different criteria.
The classification is as follows:
- According to the depth of penetration and the location of the fungus;
- According to the size of the thickness of the nail;
- According to the type of pathogen;
- According to the stage of development (early, second, advanced).
If we take as an example the type of pathogens, then in this case the patient will have to study the names in Latin for a long time, therefore it is not worth delving too deeply into unnecessary information with names, it is better to understand in detail the manifestationsof nail fungus and how all this is reflected in the nail plates.
Classification according to depth of penetration and location in the nail
In this case, the forms of the disease are divided into the following points:
- Distal. This type of onychomycosis appears on the edge of the nail (free), and is characterized by its color change and the beginning of delamination with the destruction of the structure. Plus, the spot starts to grow in size;
- Lateral. The main signs are similar to the previous form, but the color of the nail changes on one or both sides of the nail;
- White surface. This form of fungus is expressed by the appearance of several spots on the nail, which ultimately lead to its complete destruction;
- Proximal. The disease originates from the cuticle (it becomes inflamed) and gradually spreads throughout the nail destroying it;
- Total onychomycosis. The color of the entire nail plate changes, which leads to faster destruction.
Classification according to the size of nail thickness
This classification has only 3 forms, allowing you to divide the levels of compression to which a nail infected with fungus is delivered.
In this case it is:
- Normotrophic form. With this form of the disease, special foci of the disease appear on the nail, which have a slightly different color. The thickness of the nail does not change;
- Hypertrophic form. The hoof begins to thicken, change color, deform, gradually collapse and it is no longer so comfortable for a person to walk;
- Onycholithic. With this form, nail fungus leads to detachment of the layer from the finger, and if you delay the treatment, taking everything to such an extent, you do not have to think about saving the nail.
Of course, the types of toenail fungus itself are distributed depending on the pathogen. There are three main types of microorganisms, but they have their own varieties.
Classification according to the type of pathogen
In this case, three types of pathogens can be distinguished, each of which has its own subspecies. It is worth noting that these microorganisms can also appear on the hands, but since hand hygiene is more common, this happens less often.
The distribution looks like this:
- mold. This is one of the simplest forms of fungus, because the mold is not able to penetrate deeply into the affected area. However, toenail manifestations are still possible. The main signs are a change in color, ranging from black to green. Occasionally, spots of the same color may appear on the skin of the fingers. There are more than 5 types of mold;
- DERMATOPHYTE. There are 3 main pathogens that cause more severe symptoms. The appearance of gray and yellow stripes, the separation of the nail and what is even worse, microorganisms of this type can infect the entire foot;
- Yeast fungi. This fungus is known because it belongs to the genus Candida, which is also responsible for the development of thrush. The features of the symptoms when infected with such a fungus are the decrease in the thickness of the nail, changing its color to gray, detachment and damage to the finger, up to its inflammation.
It is worth noting that due to the presence of subgroups, only a specialist will be able to prescribe the right drugs for fungi; independent choice of remedies will be simply useless.
Finally
Some experts identify other forms of the disease, taking into account the manifestations of the disease in the hands, however, guided by the types known to science, you can understand what kind of fungus it is by looking at the symptoms that appear.
But this does not mean at all that you can self-medicate in this way, as there are other diseases that lead to a change in the color of the nail, as well as in its skin. For this reason, if fungus suddenly appears on your nails, you should immediately go to a doctor, for example a dermatologist, and take a comprehensive approach to solving this problem.