Commentary: Erythrasma Capitis and Hair Loss – An Under Diagnosed Entity?

Abstract

Corynebacterium minutissimum causing erythrasma is considered to belong to normal skin flora. The locations are commonly nasolabial folds, groin, axillae, intergluteal folds, submammary region and interdigital spaces of the toes. There is only one case report of two young women on Corynebacterium in the scalp, causing diffuse and patched hair loss, thus it might give the possibility of underdiagnosis. In addition oral antibiotic treatments for various infections and acne could, thus, proactively or preventively lower the risk of scalp erythrasma with rare outcome.

Keywords: Erythrasma, Diffuse Patched Hair Loss; Eczema; Corynebacterium; Treatment

Erythrasma in the Body

Corynebacteriium minutissimum causing erythrasma is considered to belong to normal skin flora. The locations are commonly nasolabial folds, groin, axillae, intergluteal folds, submammary region and interdigital spaces of the toes. It can be detected by UV lamp (Wood’s illumination lamp) as brick tile-red or coral-red color in a dark room. Corynebacteria can be cultivated by a special procedure and it is detectable by histology. Usually, mild topical antibacterial treatments are used, e.g., fucidic acid, clindamycin, mupirosin, clotrimazole or miconazole cream or oral and topical erythromycin and oral tetracyclin^1-4. Oral treatments include a single dose of 1g clarithromycin, erythromycin 250 mg QID for 14 days or tetracyclin 250 mg QID for 14 days¹. However, there are only one case report on Corynebacterium minutissimum in the scalp⁵. Also, the Braun-Falco’s or Rook’s Textbook of Dermatology do not reveal whether it could cause any effect in the scalp, especially hair loss^3,4.