erythema 79 RELATED TOPICS: Bronchiolitis; Bronchitis; Croup; Hay fever and other nasal allergies; Hives; Hyperventilation C°NSUMER GUIDE®? Quick Reference Athlete's foot SYMPTOMS • Itching • Scaling and cracking skin HOME CARE • Apply fungicidal ointment once or twice a day (half strength for delicate skin) or use ointments containing un decylenic acid or tolnaftate. • Avoid rubbersoled or plasticsoled shoes. • Have the child wear cotton socks, preferably white. • If treatment for athlete's foot does not promptly relieve the symptoms or if symptoms reappear, see your doctor. PRECAUTIONS • Continue treatment until the skin is completely clear; otherwise, the condition may flare up again. • Many medications for athlete's foot may cause skin irrita tion. • Do not scratch athlete's foot; scratching can cause additional infections. To control and prevent athlete's foot, have your child wear only cotton socks, preferably white. Athlete's foot is an infection of the skin of the feet. It is caused by of several fungi that grow best in moisture. The mildest cases cause onf. g scaling, and cracking between the toes, particularly between | c fourth and fifth toes. Athlete's foot may spread to the soles of the feet as small blisters and scaling. In severe cases it may spread to the nkles and legs. It may invade and deform the toenails. Scratching may cause additional (secondary) infections. The condition is most common during adolescence, but it may occur at any age-even in infants. SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS The scaling and cracking appearance of the skin and the itching that accompanies it are symptoms that may indicate athlete's foot. HOME CARE Apply fungicidal ointment, such as Whitfield's ointment, once or twice a day (half strength for delicate skin). Or you may use ointments containing undecylenic acid or tolnaftate (available without a prescription). To decrease sweating of the feet, avoid rubbersoled or plasticsoled shoes. Use cotton socks to absorb moisture. White socks may be best since some dyes can irritate the skin. Many "incurable" cases of athlete's foot are not athlete's foot at all but contact dermatitis caused by the treatment. Contact dermatitis is a skin rash or inflammation caused by some irritating substance. In some people, the ointments used to treat athlete's foot may cause such irritation; the athlete's foot fungus has actually been cleared up, but the skin remains irritated. If treatment for athlete's foot does not relieve the symptoms, check with your doctor to determine if the skin irritation is contact dermatitis. PRECAUTIONS • Continue treatment until the skin is completely clear; fungal infections that are not completely treated flare up again. • If improvement is not prompt and lasting, see your doctor. The condition may not be athlete's foot. Many athlete's foot medications can cause contact dermatitis in some people. MEDICAL TREATMENT The diagnosis is confirmed by scraping the skin to obtain a sample or culturing and then identifying the fungus under a microscope. fever