Has anyone gotten a ringworm fungal infection from windsurfing in saltwater bodies, bay or ocean? I had an infection, treated and it went away, also bleached all my clothes and sheets. Then a month later I got a similar infection, but not exactly the same, treating again and it is going away quickly after two days, but now wondering where I am getting it from. Have not been near dogs, which carry ringworm. Now I did start swimming at my local health club right before I got this infection, but was not swimming at the pool when I got the previous infection. Club employee said the pool has been carefully maintained and may actually be good to eliminate a ringworm infection because of the chlorine in the water.
I used to get chaffing from salt water in inconvenient places (sack rash and armpits) which would occasionally lead to a fungal infections.
Sorted it out a while back by some preventative maintenance before hitting the water each time.
Now I use a dab of Sudocream nappy rash cream
www.chemistwarehouse.com.au/buy/46349/sudocrem-healing-cream-125g-for-nappy-rash.
A bit messy for armpits of rash vest an groin area of wet suit, but no problems in +5 years of usage.
Where is the infection on your body? I had a ringworm type infection years ago that spread over most of my body. Cleared it off with anti fungus cream, but it started growing again on the inside of my elbows a couple of times. A bit of thought told me that the only bit of my body not getting the cream was my scalp and maybe I sleep with my arms up over my head. So I rubbed the cream through my hair as well as my body and it cleared up and never returned.
Funny thing is it did start from the ocean. I got a bad bluebottle sting that left a bleached patch on my belly. That patch was the area that the fungus grew from, but not until 3 or 4 years later. Or maybe my nasty sister let a mangy dog sleep in my bed and it was just coincidence that the infection was in the same spot.
Is it for sure Ringworm? A lot of us got mild swimmer's itch type irritations during the last big Red Tide event. They typically go away by themselves in a couple of days, but they do open up the possibility of reduced resistance to other infections.
Thanks for all the information, will look at the Sudocream. Yes, it is definitely ringworm, several round spots 1 cm in diameter on my chest and abdomen, and has cleared up after two days of treatment with anti-fungal cream, but will keep applying. Realize red tide can cause skin issues, but I got this in water free of red tide (lots of healthy fish). Thinking that after each session need to scrub my upper body with an anti-dandruff shampoo since that contains anti-fungal chemical.
Select to expand quoteManuel7 said..
Photos? We just use coconut oil, works well.
Sorry, it has cleared up, was only small 1 cm diameter spots. Coconut oil, interesting, could apply to chest before going in the water. Thanks
Sudocrem contains zinc oxide which is anti bacterial and anti fungal. Expensive in US, but found an alternative that is reasonable, called Boudreaux's Butt Paste with 40% zinc oxide. Thanks elmo!
Select to expand quoteSandman1221 said..
Boudreaux's Butt Paste
Great brand name! I'd love to see their advertising campaign
Select to expand quoteSandman1221 said..
Thinking that after each session need to scrub my upper body with an anti-dandruff shampoo since that contains anti-fungal chemical.
A dermatologist advised that when I had the problem. The selenium is supposed to do the trick.
It didn't, but it did make me smell faintly like rotten egg gas (H2S). A couple of tubes of the tinea cream that you can buy at the supermarket worked
Select to expand quoteManuel7 said..
Coconut oil makes it disappear after a couple of days.
Well the 40% zinc in the Butt Paste seemed high, so I mixed it ~1:1 with a thick coconut body cream from the dollar general store, so get both, the coconut cream is made in US and works better on my face than the expensive face cream brand from Whole Foods!
Select to expand quoteMr Milk said..Sandman1221 said..
Thinking that after each session need to scrub my upper body with an anti-dandruff shampoo since that contains anti-fungal chemical.
A dermatologist advised that when I had the problem. The selenium is supposed to do the trick.
It didn't, but it did make me smell faintly like rotten egg gas (H2S). A couple of tubes of the tinea cream that you can buy at the supermarket worked
Oh I did that many times the OTC fungus cream, now looking for a cream to put on before getting in salt water to stall/kill the fungus that does stick to my skin while in the water, will then scrub chest with a dandruff shampoo afterwards to get all off before it has a chance to grow on my skin. Just getting tired of it growing on my skin.
Select to expand quoteMr Milk said..Sandman1221 said..
Thinking that after each session need to scrub my upper body with an anti-dandruff shampoo since that contains anti-fungal chemical.
A dermatologist advised that when I had the problem. The selenium is supposed to do the trick.
It didn't, but it did make me smell faintly like rotten egg gas (H2S). A couple of tubes of the tinea cream that you can buy at the supermarket worked
Better than Tinea cream is thrush antifungals which you can get over the counter at chemists which work after a couple of days vs couple of weeks for for the tinea cream.
Select to expand quoteelmo said..Mr Milk said..Sandman1221 said..
Thinking that after each session need to scrub my upper body with an anti-dandruff shampoo since that contains anti-fungal chemical.
A dermatologist advised that when I had the problem. The selenium is supposed to do the trick.
It didn't, but it did make me smell faintly like rotten egg gas (H2S). A couple of tubes of the tinea cream that you can buy at the supermarket worked
Better than Tinea cream is thrush antifungals which you can get over the counter at chemists which work after a couple of days vs couple of weeks for for the tinea cream.
Will check if it is available in the US, have also tried bleach 1:1 water and that works in about 3 days, with the tinea cream after 3 days most is gone but assume I need to keep using it, will talk to a pharmacist about that since the infection is just in the dead skin cell layer on the living skin maybe once the skin looks normal the infection is gone. But then I need to wash clothes and sheets with bleach.
Now I am thinking to scrub chest area with dandruff shampoo before AND after going in the salt water, since the fungus grows on dead skin cells, fewer there are the harder for the fungus to grow, and then the remaining dead cells will be soaked with an anti-fungal from the shampoo.
Probably comes from your wetsuit.
i get an infection from time to time...definitely need treatment with anti fungal as it'll spread.
sudocreme, really doesn't have much impact on it.
I had similar thing on my neck, for two months , also small piece on left leg.
Went to see doctor, he said fungal. Took sample and I didn't follow up yet, the prescription he have to me works.
I am doubting wet suit or some thing in the sea water.
I am in Florida, so no wetsuit since maybe February, now clean shirts (wear two, white UPF 50 over venting black, for sun protection) in color safe bleach after each outing.
I've had rashes from wearing boots and Cellulitis which required a stay in hospital for a course of antibiotics after helping run a rescue boat for the Mirror World Championships while wearing wetsuit boots for 3 days in the middle of a Sydney summer.My solution is to put some antibacterial liquid soap in the boots and then fill them with hot water and then poor it out after 10 mins without rinsing and dry them out. If they're still a bit smelly which is an indication of bacteria, try squirting a little soap in them before you put them on. If you've left them in a bag and they've gone feral, drop half a sanitiser tablet (e.g. Napisan) in each boot with some hot water and leave them to soak for 1/2 hour. Then let them dry completely.
Select to expand quotePewit said..
I've had rashes from wearing boots and Cellulitis which required a stay in hospital for a course of antibiotics after helping run a rescue boat for the Mirror World Championships while wearing wetsuit boots for 3 days in the middle of a Sydney summer.My solution is to put some antibacterial liquid soap in the boots and then fill them with hot water and then poor it out after 10 mins without rinsing and dry them out. If they're still a bit smelly which is an indication of bacteria, try squirting a little soap in them before you put them on. If you've left them in a bag and they've gone feral, drop half a sanitiser tablet (e.g. Napisan) in each boot with some hot water and leave them to soak for 1/2 hour. Then let them dry completely.
I always wear booties, but after each use I dry them out using a fan driven boot dryer for about an hour (gentle heat), that has kept my feet infection free. But did have a problem with my big toe getting infected when I did not dry boots out completely, so soaked boot toe area with cotton soaked in 70% isopropanol for 30 min. and then dried as above, solved the problem.
But I think a better treatment to kill bacteria and fungus in boots and on other items is to spray with a lysol type of disinfectant spray that is 50% alcohol.
Have used the Butt Past now on several scraps and even a infection in my ear canal, it worked remarkably fast. Did first use a triple antibiotic ointment on the ear canal sore, but it worked very slowly, so finally tried the Butt Cream and it cleared it up right away. Now every time my ears get wet I spray a solution of 1:1 white vinegar and 70% isopropanol into my ear canal and on the outer ear. Got one of those $25 ear video scopes you use with your phone to see what was causing pain in my ear, found small sores in both ear canals and on both outer ears. Saltwater apparently can harbor a lot of pathogens, bacterial and fungal.
Heard about using anti dandruff shampoo as cheap preventative with bjj rolling. Never got ringworm from salt water but a couple of us used to get skin breakouts from sailing especially after rain.
Might be worth you seeing a dermatologist, yeah salt water carries crap loads of pathogens but maybe it's just altering your skin pH or dryness favourably for existing skin flora? If that's the case any extra soaking/treatment of swimwear could be making problem worse.
Select to expand quotemkseven said..
Heard about using anti dandruff shampoo as cheap preventative with bjj rolling. Never got ringworm from salt water but a couple of us used to get skin breakouts from sailing especially after rain.
Might be worth you seeing a dermatologist, yeah salt water carries crap loads of pathogens but maybe it's just altering your skin pH or dryness favourably for existing skin flora? If that's the case any extra soaking/treatment of swimwear could be making problem worse.
Saw a dermatologist, that is what he said, normal flora growing, but it was not, bleached all shirts and sheets and it went away.
I am now using pyrithione zinc dandruff shampoo to scrub my chest with a microfiber cloth, that is where I typically get it, and that has cleared it up. Probably start doing it after whenever I get in water, saltwater bay or freshwater swimming pool. The scrubbing also helps to remove dead skin cells, and that is what the fungus lives on.
Select to expand quoteRichiefish said..
Daktagold works well. Over the counter , Chemist shop.
Thanks Richiefish, but apparently not available in the US.
What I read online was to make a 1:1 solution of household bleach and water, and use a cotton ball or Q-tip to apply to and around the ringworm infection. The big advantage is they claimed doing that 2-3 times a day would eliminate the infection in 3 days. So I tried it, and it worked in three days!
Select to expand quoteSandman1221 said..
What I read online was to make a 1:1 solution of household bleach and water, and use a cotton ball or Q-tip to apply to and around the ringworm infection. The big advantage is they claimed doing that 2-3 times a day would eliminate the infection in 3 days. So I tried it, and it worked in three days!
Dear Sandman 1221,
Last year same thing happened to me. Because of dirty salt water and dirty beaches. My dermatologist wrote me a prescription which cream name is TRAVAZOL. It contains cortizon I used it twice a day for 15 days. I healed. This cream is really solution.
Bye Melih.
Select to expand quotemelih said..Sandman1221 said..
What I read online was to make a 1:1 solution of household bleach and water, and use a cotton ball or Q-tip to apply to and around the ringworm infection. The big advantage is they claimed doing that 2-3 times a day would eliminate the infection in 3 days. So I tried it, and it worked in three days!
Dear Sandman 1221,
Last year same thing happened to me. Because of dirty salt water and dirty beaches. My dermatologist wrote me a prescription which cream name is TRAVAZOL. It contains cortizon I used it twice a day for 15 days. I healed. This cream is really solution.
Bye Melih.
Okay, thanks Melih, good to know that salt water is where I likely got it, will look up travazol.
Found a 1:1 mix of household bleach and water to be the best treatment for ringworm on my chest, kills it off in three days and so minimizes contamination of my clothes with fungal spores. Borax seems to be the best color safe bleach to use to kill fungal spores on clothing. Between the two finally got rid of a reoccurring ringworm/fungal infection. Also now scrub chest and upper arms with a dandruff shampoo after each session.
And by the time you realize you have a ringworm infection, one to two weeks or so, your clothes will be contaminated with fungal spores that survive normal washing and will reinfect you. Found detergent plus Borax in hot water killed off the spores.
