An unwelcome germ visitor to the Big Apple is making itself cozy. In a recent paper published last month, scientists have reported the growing emergence of a sexually transmitted ringworm fungus—one that has infected at least five people in New York City this year.
There are over 40 different types of fungi known to cause ringworm, which is a broad term for fungal infections of the skin, hair and nails (the name alludes to the ring-shaped rashes that often appear, though no worms are involved). While most of these infections are only mildly annoying, dermatologists have begun to notice new, more concerning variants of ringworm emerging in recent years. One of these worrying newcomers is the fungus Trichophyton mentagrophytes ITS genotype VII, or TMVII. The fungus is unusual in that it seems to primarily spread through close sexual contact, something only rarely seen with other forms of ringworm.
Earlier this June, researchers at New York University Langone Health and elsewhere reported the first known U.S. case of TMVII, which had previously been confined to parts of Europe and Asia. Now the same researchers and others have detailed four more TMVII cases discovered in NYC between April and July of this year. Thankfully, all of the people infected with TMVII do appear to have been treated successfully, though some required multiple courses of antifungal medication. The team’s findings were published last Thursday in the CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
“Health care providers should be aware that TMVII can spread through sexual contact and cause lesions on the genitals, buttocks, face, trunk, or extremities,” the researchers wrote.
All five NYC cases involved cisgender men who recently had sex with other men. Two people had sex with each other, one of whom was a sex worker. Past reported clusters of TMVII have also predominantly affected men who have sex with men, though there have been cases among heterosexual men and women as well. Some research has suggested that TMVII first emerged in southeast Asia, where its transmission was likely fueled by contact with infected female sex workers.
The fungus is thought to have become endemic in Europe since it was first found in Asia. And given the detection of these latest cases, it is possible that TMVII will eventually or is already spreading locally in NYC and elsewhere in the country. So the authors are calling for doctors, patients, and public health officials to be on the lookout for the fungus moving forward.
“Public health surveillance, health care provider and patient education and awareness, and increased access to dermatophyte identification and antifungal susceptibility testing could help detect, monitor, and prevent the spread of TMVII,” they wrote.
Unfortunately, TMVII isn’t the only emerging ringworm fungus that might become a problem for New Yorkers. Researchers have also recently discovered cases of the fungus Trichophyton indotineae in the area, which appears to not only cause more severe ringworm than usual but may also resist many common antifungal treatments.
English (US) ·