Ring Worm Skin Infection in a Rural Community of Bushenyi (Uganda)

Abstract

Aim: Ring worm skin infections which have continuously been neglected in several communities of sub Saharan Africa, thus leading to the development of herbal remedies as communities seek to find solutions to the menace. The aim of this study was to assess the community skin ring worm infections and their associated risk factors in South Western Uganda. Materials and Methods: This was a cross sectional study in a rural community of Bushenyi district in South Western Uganda. A total of 34 homesteads were randomly selected and a semi-structured questionnaire was used for data collection. Results and Discussion: The study showed that majority of homesteads which accessed water from non protected springs, 41.2% had ring worm skin infection of the head (tinea capitis), 11.8% due to tinea corporis and 5.9% either due to tinea unguium, tinea cruris, tinea corporis, tinea circinata, or tinea glabrosa, tinea pedis and tinea barbae which are generalized in different parts of the body. The major risk factors identified were water security (P = 0.01) and community treatment practices (P = 0.002) against the dermatophytes. Despite the fact that some homesteads attempted to treat the skin infections, other homesteads didn’t bother to seek treatment thus posing a major risk factor for the re-infection in the community. Conclusion: The adoption of ethno-medicinal plants for management of skin infection has been shown to be greatly adopted by this rural community, thus a follow up study to understand the anti-fungal activity of a selected herbal plant from the community is highly encouraged.