The objective is to demonstrate person-to-person spread of dermatophytes of the skin and nails among family members, as measured by fungal culture and DNA typing of the dermatophytes isolated.

Enrolled families consist of at least two members over the age of 14. Once the index person is examined and a dermatophyte is isolated from either toenail or foot scale, other family members are examined and cultured. All dermatophyte isolates obtained from each family unit are compared using DNA typing and restriction length polymorphism (RFLP) to determine whether family members share the same organism or were infected by an outside source.

Inclusion Criteria: positive dermatophyte culture

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Exclusion Criteria:

• use of antifungal agents, either oral or topical

Study Design-Households with at least 2 residents and 1 individual (index person [IP]) with tinea pedis and/or onychomycosis were identified by screening. Infection was confirmed clinically and mycologically (potassium hydroxide [KOH] and culture positive) in the IP; then other members within the same household were examined for tinea pedis and/or onychomycosis using the same criteria. All participants with confirmed fungal infections were referred to their primary care physicians for appropriate treatment.

Adverse Event data was not collection, this was a single clinic visit.

Averse Event data was not collected.

A cross-sectional, not longitudinal, analysis; therefore, we were unable to determine the chronology of infection, the cause-and-effect relationship between specific strain types and infection, or the household member that was infected first.