Korpi Kiia, Kiviniemi Eetu, Jokelainen Jari, Huilaja Laura, Sinikumpu Suvi-Päivikki
Faculty of Medicine, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland.
Northern Finland Birth Cohorts, Arctic Biobank, and Infrastructure for Population Studies, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland.
Microbiol Spectr. 2025 Oct 7;13(10):e0163725. doi: 10.1128/spectrum.01637-25. Epub 2025 Aug 28.
Superficial fungal infections in children are less prevalent compared with adults, and there are limited data on epidemiology in Northern Europe. This study retrospectively observed the epidemiological factors and treatment patterns of these infections in children in Northern Finland between 2000 and 2021. Patients under 18 years diagnosed with superficial tinea infections at the dermatology outpatient clinic of Oulu University Hospital were included in the study. During the study period, there were 94 cases fulfilling the inclusion criteria. The most common infections were tinea unguium (44.7%), tinea capitis (25.5%), and tinea pedis (23.4%). was the predominant pathogen (56.4%) in these infections. The duration of symptoms before referral to the dermatology clinic was over 6 months in most of the cases (53.2%). In this study, we found that superficial fungal infections are relatively rare in children and seem to have a delay in diagnosis. Increased awareness among physicians is important for accurate diagnosis and treatment.
Superficial fungal infections are infections of the skin and nails caused by fungi. They occur in 20%-25% of the global population. These infections are less common in children than in adults. This study investigated the prevalence of superficial fungal infections diagnosed in a Finnish hospital. The data were collected from patients diagnosed with superficial fungal infection at the age of under 18 years by a dermatologist between the years 2000 and 2021. Fungal infections of nails were the most common. Additionally, the study found frequent delays in diagnosis, as more than half of the cases had had symptoms for more than 6 months. This research provides information on fungal infections in children in Northern Finland and highlights the importance of improved recognition of these infections.
与成人相比，儿童浅表真菌感染的患病率较低，北欧关于其流行病学的数据有限。本研究回顾性观察了2000年至2021年芬兰北部儿童这些感染的流行病学因素和治疗模式。纳入了在奥卢大学医院皮肤科门诊被诊断为浅表癣感染的18岁以下患者。在研究期间，有94例符合纳入标准。最常见的感染是甲癣（44.7%）、头癣（25.5%）和足癣（23.4%）。 是这些感染中的主要病原体（56.4%）。在大多数病例（53.2%）中，转诊至皮肤科诊所前症状持续时间超过6个月。在本研究中，我们发现儿童浅表真菌感染相对少见，且似乎存在诊断延迟。提高医生的认识对于准确诊断和治疗很重要。
浅表真菌感染是由真菌引起的皮肤和指甲感染。全球20%-25%的人口会发生此类感染。这些感染在儿童中比在成人中更少见。本研究调查了芬兰一家医院诊断的浅表真菌感染的患病率。数据收集自2000年至2021年间由皮肤科医生诊断为18岁以下浅表真菌感染的患者。指甲真菌感染最为常见。此外，研究发现诊断经常延迟，因为超过一半的病例症状出现超过6个月。这项研究提供了关于芬兰北部儿童真菌感染的信息，并强调了提高对这些感染认识的重要性。
