Ringworm of the Skin
Prevention
To prevent ringworm of the skin:
- Keep your skin clean and dry. Change your socks and underwear at least once a day.
- Wear loose-fitting cotton clothing. Avoid tight underwear, pants, and panty hose.
- Always dry yourself completely after showers or baths. After drying your skin with a towel, allow your skin to air-dry before putting your clothes on. You can also use a hair dryer, set on a cool setting, to dry your skin.
- Do not share clothing, sports equipment, towels, or sheets. If you think you have been exposed to ringworm, wash your clothes in hot water with fungus-killing (fungicidal) soap.
- Wear slippers or sandals in locker rooms, showers, and public bathing areas.
- Shower and shampoo thoroughly after any sport that requires skin-to-skin contact.
- If you have athlete's foot, put your socks on before your underwear so that fungi do not spread from your feet to your groin.
- Take your pet to a veterinarian if it has patches of missing hair, which may be a sign of a fungal infection. Household pets can spread fungi that cause ringworm in people.
To prevent ringworm from returning after treatment, apply talcum or other drying powder to the affected area daily.
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| Author: | Maria G. Essig, MS, ELS | Last Updated: April 19, 2007 |
| Medical Review: | Kathleen Romito, MD - Family Medicine Randall D. Burr, MD - Dermatology | |
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