Corkscrew Hair: A New Dermoscopic Sign for Diagnosis of Tinea Capitis in Black Children

The document reports on a study conducted between September 2009 and February 2010 involving 6 black children, aged 2.0 to 12.5 years, suspected of having tinea capitis (TC), a common childhood dermatophytosis. These children, all first-generation northwest African immigrants, underwent dermoscopic examination to identify specific patterns for a rapid and reliable diagnosis of TC. The study found that all 6 cases had comma hairs, and 4 patients with a diagnosis of Trichophyton soudanense also had exaggerated corkscrew hairs, which were not described in previous studies. Broken and dystrophic hairs were also observed, except in the case of Microsporum langeronii. The study suggests that corkscrew hair could be a new diagnostic marker for TC, and dermoscopic evaluation may be a rapid diagnostic tool, especially beneficial in atypical presentations. However, the study acknowledges its limitations due to the small number of patients and the absence of controls, suggesting that further research with a larger group of patients is needed to define the role of dermoscopy in TC diagnosis.