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Pityrosporum Folliculitis

What Is Pityrosporum Folliculitis?

Pityrosporum folliculitis is a fungal form of folliculitis. Folliculitis describes the condition where your hair follicles become infected by either bacteria or fungus.

In pityrosporum folliculitis there sometimes isn't any infection at all. The fungi in question will get into your follicles and multiply, but infection doesn't always happen. At least initially anyway.

Pityrosporum (also known as Malassezia) is a fungi and is commonly referred to as a yeast infection, however the treatment is based around the fact that pityrosporum is primarily a fungal infection.

The fungi in question naturally occurs on the skin, so cleanliness is not a factor in it's presence. It is most common in teenagers and men and tends to form around the upper body on the chest and back.

Pityrosporum folliculitis is sometimes mistaken as acne.

This can be disastrous as acne treatments feed the fungi

making it more powerful and severe

Pityrosporum Folliculitis Causes

Because pityrosporum is already present on your skin, there is no definitive reason to explain how or why this problem occurs. However, there are a few known factors which have a high correlation in people with pityrosporum folliculitis.

The two main factors influencing the onset of pityrosporum folliculitis are heat and breathability. The fungi will grow faster in a warm humid climate and if you cover your skin so it can't breathe, this will also exacerbate the problem even more.

If you live in a hot country there isn't much you can do about the first factor, however, you can do something about covering up your skin. Avoid tight fitting clothing, especially when exercising! Also, reduce the use of oily skin creams, greasy sun screens and anything else which restricts breathability.

You will also be more prone to pityrosporum folliculitis if you are overweight, have diabetes or suffer from dandruff. External factors which can induce the problem include orally taken steroids (such as prednisone) and antibiotics.

Antibiotics kill the bacteria on your skin which in turn gives the pityrosporum fungi free reign to multiply and invade. For women; if you're on the pill (oral contraceptive), your chances of suffering from pityrosporum folliculitis will also be greater.

Pityrosporum Folliculitis Symptoms

The symptoms for pityrosporum folliculitis do not look as severe as regular folliculitis or hot tub folliculitis, however the itching can be far more severe. Pityrosporum folliculitis will usually start with a rash which appears as bumpy or rough skin with a mild itch. You may also sometimes get a few whiteheads.

The itching will become more severe, feeling more like stinging, if not treated and is made worse by sweating or after a hot shower. When itched the rash will flare up into a stinging red blotchy rash.

Pityrosporum Folliculitis Treatment

It is important to treat both the fungi and also the conditions which caused the problem in the first place. If you don't change any of the causing factors, the condition will remain and will cause scarring and constant discomfort.

There are two options for pityrosporum folliculitis treatment and they are oral and topical medications.

The oral medications are known to be the most effective and include Nizoral and Sporonox. You will need to see a specialist to get these drugs and the likelihood of the problem recurring is high.

You can treat the skin directly with an anti-dandruff shampoo and / or antifungal cream like ketoconazole or ciclopirox. It's possible to treat this problem at home which will save you money and time.

Visit our home page for details about how to cure pityrosporum folliculitis for good and also how to stop it recurring forever.