First case of a rare, sexually transmitted form of ringworm reported in the USA

Medical experts are sounding the alarm because a highly contagious, sexually transmitted ringworm caused by a rare fungus has appeared for the first time in the United States.

“Healthcare providers should be aware that Trichophyton mentagrophytes type VII is the latest in a group of serious skin infections that have now reached the United States,” wrote lead study author and physician Avrom Caplan, a dermatologist at New York University Grossman School of Medicine and author of the new report, in a university press release.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, Trichophyton mentagrophytes type VII is a sexually transmitted fungus.

The rare fungus is drug-resistant and causes skin diseases in animals and humans. According to the CDC, it is transmitted through sexual contact.

The case report, published Wednesday in JAMA Dermotology by doctors at NYU Langone Health in New York City, involves a man in his 30s from New York City who developed ringworm on his genitals, buttocks and extremities after he reported having sex with several men during a trip to England, Greece and California.

When he returned home, he developed an itchy red rash on his legs, groin and buttocks, according to the case study.

Tests were conducted which later confirmed that he had been infected with the rare fungus. It is the first time the fungus has been identified in the United States.

Last year, doctors in France reported 13 cases of the rare fungus, 12 of which were men who have sex with other men.

The New York City man’s infection responded well to standard antifungal medications. He was given fluconazole for four weeks without improvement, then terbinafine for six weeks, and itraconazole for about eight more weeks. All are oral antifungals.

It took four and a half months for him to recover.

Fortunately, this means that Trichophyton mentagrophytes type VII is treatable.

Caplan believes the case should raise awareness but not cause public panic.

“There’s no evidence that this is widespread or that this is something that people really need to be concerned about,” he told NBC News. “But if people have itchy rashes in areas like the groin and it doesn’t get better, they should see a doctor.”

He also encouraged others who may have been infected with the rare fungus to come forward and seek treatment.

“If you have a rash or skin lesions that are not getting better and you think it might be ringworm, go see your doctor,” Caplan told NBC News.