Ringworm Treatment

[krakatoa]

I am 40 old male and I had been going to see a Physicians Assistance in a Dermatology office.  Originally the PA believed I had nummular eczema.  I had a 3/4 inch round indication on my wrist. I kept putting on desoximetasone 0.25% cream for three months at his advice (with follow up visits complaining that it would not go away).
The indication,  which started as about a 3/4 round on my wrist,  grew quikly (in the last 2-3 weeks) to about a large 3 to 3.5 inch round indication (it huge).  I went back to see a different PA in another dermatology office.  A biopsy the second PA made indicated I have dermatophytosis or tinea corpis? or a type of ringworm per the biopsis results I was given over the phone.  This made sense since I train in judo and people who grapple sometimes get ringworm because of the sweat on the mat etc.

I have available three medicines to treat this.
I have Mentax (butenanfie HCL) cream 1%,  Oxistat 1% cream (oxiconazole nitrate) and over the counter Lamisil.

I now have used for four days the Oxistat.  It seem to stop the growth but has yet to clear. I also am see a couple of new tiny dots above the ring, it seems to be trying to grow above the ring.

Someone that has been training in Judo for many years told me they use over the counter Lamisil and have not had to use RX to get rid of ringworm.  That Lamisil is what I should use.  Sometimes I think that experience counts vs. what the RX I have from PA.

My concern is that my ringworm is huge and may trying to continue growing.

What medicie is best to use?  Continue using Oxistat??  Switch to Mentax or use Lamisil since others have been successfully using Lamisil. I am currently using both Lamisil and Oxistat and wanted to know if that is OK also. I want to make sure this large ringwork goes away.

How long should it take to notice that the medicine is working?
Very frustated with this thing for so many months.

[Alan Rockoff, MD]

Mentax, Oxistat, and Lamisil are all effective.  In my experience, fungus that's grown because of steroid use (it's happened to me, too, I confess) sometimes needs a few days of oral Lamisil to turn it around, perhaps a week.  I suggest you ask your new dermatologic practitioner to consider adding this to your topical regimen.  Keep in mind, though, that eventually your rash will be cured and go away.  The first part of the many months it's taken, when you were using the steroid, doesn't count.....

Best.

Dr. Rockoff

[krakatoa]

Can I use both Lamisil creme and Oxistat creme together? Do the medecines counter act each other?

[Alan Rockoff, MD]

They don't interact, but I don't see the point.

Dr. Rockoff

[Triumph5]

A related discussion, Ringworm of the scalp and Terbinafine was started.