AFFECTIONS CAUSED BY VEGETABLE PARASITES 477 



not only grows from one centre, as in the other form, but it may make 

 its appearance in a number of new centres scattered all over the body, 

 until finally the whole is strewn with numerous, isolated, round-shaped 

 bare spots. The parasite may be transmitted to dogs, man, cattle, goats, 

 cats, pigs, and rabbits. This mushroom, which attacks the skin, spreads 

 to the hair follicle. ^Mien the hair and scales are put in a caustic potash 

 solution, and examined under the microscope with a low power, large 

 masses of spores are found massed like strings of beads (Fig. 173). In 

 isolated cases sometimes, where all the appearances point to Tricho- 

 phyton, it is not found to be present. Boden and Almy describe an 

 eruption resembling herpes, which resembled round or oval gray-white 

 stains, covered with scales, seen on the back, flanks and the lower parts 

 of the extremities caused by the micro-spores audouini, the cause of head 

 fungus in children. This condition heals very rapidly. The French 

 authors claim that all herpes is due to various forms of fungi. Schindelka 

 claims that the majority of cases of herpes that originate in man are due 

 to contact with diseased dogs. 



Clinical Symptoms. — The eruptions which start generally in the 

 head, region of the lips and eyes, and more rarely on the neck and legs, 

 are marked by small, round, or elongated herpes, which vary in shape and 

 size between a lentil and a large bean. The spots are hairless and 

 distinctly circumscribed. The blotches are arranged at intervals and 

 are generally very regular. They become confluent in some cases, and 

 extend over the entire body. Affected regions show peculiar grayish- 

 white or dirty gray asbestos-like scabs and in old cases yellowish-brown 

 crusts about 2 mm. in thickness. These crusts may have some hair 

 adhering to them. The skin under the crust is copper-red in color and 

 covered with numerous millet-like nodules (swollen hair-follicles). 

 After a certain time, if the disease ceases to spread, the scab drops off 

 gradually, and we see a bare, scaly herpes upon which the hair slowly 

 returns; it is very similar and might easily be mistaken at this stage for 

 alopecia areata. In other cases we find the formation of nodular eleva- 

 tions, semiglobular in shape, very sensitive to the touch, rough on the 

 surface and brown in color. They generally appear on the head, par- 

 ticularly on the cheeks, and are generally very difficult to treat, follow- 

 ing a protracted course covering over one or two months. Itching is 

 constantly present, l:)ut mild in character. After the acute symptoms 

 have subsided the scales fall off, leaving a bare space, smooth or with a 

 few scales on it, and the hair returns gradually. 



R. Ac. salicylic, 3.0 



Alcohol,' 30.0 



Sig. — Salicylic ointment. 



