Search

Tinea capitis (TC) is the most common dermatophyte scalp infection in children and an unusual dermatophytosis in adults. The clinical appearance of tinea capitis is highly variable and depends on the causative organism, type of hair invasion, and degree of the host inflammatory response. The commonly observed features are patchy hair loss with varying degrees of scaling and erythema. The clinical signs may be subtle and diagnosis may be challenging. We report the case of an adult patient with tinea capitis mimicking alopecia areata. The patient was initially diagnosed with alopecia areata and completed one month of treatment without clinical benefits. In view of no clinical signs of tinea capitis, a biopsy was performed. A scalp punch biopsy revealed an endothrix dermatophytosis. The patient's medication was switched to 250 mg terbinafine daily for 8 weeks and 2% ketoconazole shampoo. The patient completed two months of therapy with maintenance of hair regrowth and resolution of symptoms and scales. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]