A Mother and Daughter with Tinea Corporis Caused by Microsporum canis Apparently Transmitted from a Domestic Cat

Abstract

The patient was a girl (case 1) and her mother (case 2). The family had purchased a domestic cat five months previously. Three months later, both patients developed eruptions. Mycological examinations were positive in both cases, and the cat tested positive on the hairbrush test. The macroconidia were thick only in the cat strain, and drug susceptibility testing showed mildly low levels of terbinafine and itraconazole. However, a molecular biological analysis of these three strains showed 100% identity with reference strains of Microsporum canis. Since there have been recent reports of drug-resistant dermatophytosis, drug-susceptibility testing is considered necessary.