Ringworm on face is a common condition in children as well as adults. It is usually marked by areas of itchy, dry and scaly skin and rash. Explore facts, pictures, causes, signs, and symptoms of facial ringworm. Furthermore, learn how to get rid of and prevent it with medical treatments and home remedies.
Signs and Symptoms of Ringworm on Face
Ringworm is a fungal skin disease that is also known as Tinea. This skin infection can occur anywhere on your body parts. Commonly, ringworms can show up on the scalp, groin, underarm, feet, back, neck, and on the face.
The infection of ringworm on the face is called Tinea Faciei. Usually, ringworm on face mighty rarely appears as ring-shaped. They can take the characteristic of red dry or scaly patches that has no particular shape in the affected area.
Other signs and symptoms that ringworms infection may show up on your face include the following:
- Irregular dry or scaly itchy patches
- Round dry patches on face
- Red, pink, grey, white or ashy dots, spots or patches on face
- Inflamed, tender, redness on skin of the face
- Itchy skin rash on face in affected area with patches
- Dark scarring on face
The signs and symptoms of ringworm on the face can appear on the forehead, on eyelids, around the eyes, on nose, cheeks, and chin.
Ringworm or Eczema
The infection of ringworm on the skin might have similar symptoms that resemble that of eczema. Sometimes it might be difficult for you to distinguish the two skin condition especially if your skin has eczema that looks like ringworm infection.
Eczema on the skin is usually characterized by chronic itchy red patches. The affected area might become inflamed, dry, scaly, cracked, rough and sometimes leathery. Also, eczema can make your skin to develop blisters that may burst, weep out and crust over.
On the other hand, ringworm on the face can make the affected area to appear dry, flaky or scaly with a red or pink rash on patches that may develop into ashy marks in the affected area of the skin. Unlike eczema, ringworms do not form oozing blisters that crust over.
Causes of Ringworm on Face
What causes ringworm infection on the face? This is one of the questions that may come into your mind when you notice that your facial skin has patches of ringworms. It is important for you to learn the causes and risk factors that can lead to ringworm infection on the face.
Ringworm infection on the skin is usually caused by fungi. There are various types of fungi that can lead to ringworm infection on your skin. Dermatophyte is known skin fungi that can lead to dry scaly patches on your face.
The type of fungi that causes ringworm to appear typically on your face is called Tinea faciei. Usually, these skin fungi can live on the outmost layer on your skin that has dead cells. They cannot live on living skin tissue.
The saprophytic fungus on your face can feed on dead skin tissue. Consequently, they can make your skin to develop into dry, scaly itchy patches. A severe attack of facial ringworms can lead to red itchy rash in the affected area.
Ringworm infection is highly contagious. It can spread from one person to another through direct skin contact. Also, your pet such as cats and dog can spread and infect your skin with ringworms. The common mechanisms that skin fungus can spread include:
- Person to person: your skin can be infected by ringworms when you become in contact with the ringworm infected person.
- Animal to people: you close interaction with pets or domestic animals such as cats, dogs, rabbit, horse and cow that are infected by skin ringworms can lead to your infection.
- Object to person: the skin fungus can spread through the contaminated surface, objects, and Sharing of cloth, towel, and washcloth with an infected person with ringworms can also lead to infection of your skin.
Risk factors that cause ringworm on face
There are several predisposing factors that may encourage the infection of ringworm on your skin. They include:
- Poor hygiene on your skin due to the accumulated dirt, dead skin cells, sweats, and oil that encourages the ringworm on your skin.
- Compromising immune system due to other underlying infections such as HIV, diabetes, tuberculosis, and
- Very close interaction with your infected pets with ringworms can increase the chance of to getting the infection.
- The moist environmental condition can favor the growth of skin fungi on the face and other parts of the body.
- Childhood stage is always associated with underdeveloped immunes system hence ringworm on face is common in children, toddlers, infants or babies.
- A facial hug can lead to the direct skin in contact that can lead to spread and infection of tinea faciei on your face.
Other types of ringworms that can spread to your face
Apart from tinea faciei, there are other types of ringworms that might affect other parts of your body and they can spread to your face. These types of ringworms are named depending on the area of your body parts that they affect. They include:
- Tinea capitis: these types of ringworms that affect the scalp and they can spread to your forehead.
- Tinea corporis: are form of ringworms that can occur anywhere on the outer surface of your skin and they can spread to your face
- Jock itch or Tinea cruris: they usually occur at genital area, groin, and thighs and on buttocks.
- Athlete’s foot or tinea pedis: this form of ringworms typically affects the lower feet and the toes.
It is quite useful for you to know that the word ‘ringworm’ does not means that the infection is caused by worms. The term ringworm is an English word that originated from the ancient Greek word ‘herpes’ that means rings and the Roman word ‘Tinea’ that describe worms.
Because the skin fungi had symptoms that were characterized by ring-shaped patches, it was believed that this infection caused by worms. However, ringworm is not caused by worms. It is caused by fungi like molds or yeast knows as a dermatophyte.
How to Get Rid of Ringworm on Face
There are several treatment methods that you can use to get rid of ringworms on your face. For tiny or small patches of ringworm on your face, you can use home remedies. Alternatively, you can go for medical treatment by visiting the doctor if your face has serious large and chronic patches ringworms.
Treatment
After presenting your skin problem to the doctor, your doctor will decide the appropriate diagnosis and treatment plan that can help to get rid of ringworm on your face. Your doctor might use the following treatment methods that can help to cure ringworm on face that include:
- An oral medication that includes the prescription of antifungals oral drugs that can help to treat ringworms on your face.
- Prescription of medicated lotions and ointment creams that you can apply externally to the affected area of your face.
- Prescription of medicated soaps that you can use which can help to kill skin fungi.
Home Remedies
You can also use the natural treatment methods to get rid of ringworm on face. Try the following home remedies:
1. Aloe Vera
You can apply Aloe Vera cream or gel to your face as a home remedy that can help to cure patches of ringworm. The herb has a natural anti-fungal property that can help to kill skin fungi on your face.
How to use:
- Use warm water to wash your face and dry it off with a towel
- Get Aloe Vera cream or gel and apply it directly to the affected skin parts on your face
- Leave it to stay on your skin for more than an hour before rinsing it off with water
- Repeat this treatment three times in a day in a period of few weeks until you notice an improvement in your skin
2. Apple cider vinegar
Apple cider vinegar is an effective antifungal reagent that you can as a remedy to treat dry patch of ringworm on your face.
How to use:
- Get ¼ cup of apple cider vinegar and dilute it with equal amount of water
- Use a cotton ball to apply the solution to the affected skin area of your face
- Leave it to stay on your skin for about 30 minutes before rinsing it off with water
- To ensure effective results, repeat this step two times in a day for few weeks until patches of ringworm on face clear away
3. Olive oil
Olive oil is an excellent home remedy that can help to treat ringworm infection on the skin of your face. The oil has antifungal properties that can help to kill skin fungus. Also, it can soothe and moisturize itchy dry patches in the affected area of your face.
How to use:
- Wash your face with warm water and pat dry it with a towel
- Apply the oil directly to the affected area of your skin on face
- Allow the oil to stay on your skin for the whole day
- Repeat this steps three times in a day for few weeks until ringworm on your face go away
- Instead of olive oil, you can alternatively use any other essential oil such as castor oil, Neem tree oil, coconut oil, lavender oil and almond oil
4. Raw honey
Raw honey has antiseptic properties that can help to kill skin fungi. It can also help to soothe and moisturize scaly and dry patchy skin to facilitate the healing.
How to use:
- Wash your face with warm water and pat dry it with a washcloth
- Get raw honey and dab few drops to the affected area of your face with ringworm patches
- Allow it to stay on your skin for more than 30 minutes before rinsing it off with water
- Ensure you repeat to apply it two times in a day for few weeks until the patches of ringworm on your face go away
5. Lemon juice and ginger juice
- Mix ¼ cup of lemon juice with equal volume of ginger juice
- Apply the mixture to the affected area of your skin
- Leave it to stay on your skin for about 20 minutes before rinsing it off with water
- Repeat this steps three times in a day for few weeks until patches of ringworm on your face clear away
How to Prevent Ringworm on Face
You can prevent the infection of ringworms on your face using the following tips:
- Practice proper skin hygiene by washing it regularly with appropriate antiseptic soap
- Avoid the sharing of towel, washcloth, soaps and other personal items
- Ensure you avoid direct skin in contact with people who have ringworm infection on the skin
- Avoid close interaction with pets or domestic animals that show symptoms of ringworm infection on their skin
- Consider the prevention measures of ringworm and educate others including your children on how to prevent ringworm infection on the skin
When to See a Doctor
It is advisable to see your doctor over ringworm on face if you notice the following conditions:
- When dry patches of ringworm has persisted on your skin of your face for more than three weeks without reasonable improvement
- When your face develop chronic patches of ringworm and rashes that look worrisome and threaten your beauty
- If your face develop sores and blister that burst, weep out and crust over
- If you develop severe itchy skin on face that makes you feel a discomfort
- When your infant, baby, toddler or child develop strange patches of ringworm on skin of the face that appear worrisome
Sources and References
[showhide type=”links” more_text=”Show Sources and References” less_text=”Hide Sources and References”]
- Ringworm on the face: https://www.webmd.com/skin-problems-and-treatments/ss/slideshow-ringworm
- Signs and symptoms of ringworm on the face: https://www.medicinenet.com/ringworm/article.htm
- Causes of ringworm on the face: https://www.avogel.co.uk/health/skin/fungal-skin-infections/facial-ringworm/
- Treatment of facial ringworms: https://www.livestrong.com/article/166848-how-to-get-rid-of-ringworm-on-your-leg/
- Home remedies for facial ringworms: https://www.healthline.com/health/home-remedies-for-ringworm#outlook
- How to prevent ringworm infection on face: https://www.wikihow.com/Prevent-Ringworm-Infection [/showhide]
