Among an immense variety of fungi existing in the world, only several of them may pose danger to the human well-being. At the same time, infections that fungi cause in humans are quite difficult to treat. That is, perhaps, the reason why so many medications are now available in the pharmacies, so every patient along with his/her doctor have a wide range of choice to find the most effective drug.
Many antifungal medications are available without prescription, like Lamisil cream and Lamisil AT (terbinafine), Lotrimin AF (clotrimazole), or Monistat 3 and Monistat 7 various vaginal forms (miconazole). They are used to cure different fugal infections and have quite a broad spectrum of action. However, terbinafine is more effective against dermatophytes (fungi, which live on the skin, hair, and nails), and has less potent action on the yeasts (which may live anywhere on or in the body). At the same time, it requires less time to cure the disease. Other two drugs are known to be similarly effective against both types of fungi, and they are strong enough to cure persistent and slowly-healing infections.
In the result of these medications’ action the main life-supporting processes in the cells of fungi are disrupted and they eventually die. However, the process of fighting with fungi usually takes much time, so therapies may last as long as a couple of months to cure the infection, although the first obvious results usually appear much sooner.
Taking into account the area of the body where infection is located and its size, different treatment approaches (as well the drugs doses) may be used. For example, if a limited body surface (skin) is affected, the above mentioned topical medications may be the first choice. However, if the infection is situated inside the body, on the nails or hair, or if it involves large areas of skin, systemic therapy is recommended.
It is interesting to note that fungi cells have actually much in common with human cells; thus, antifungal chemicals target the cells of a patient as well, which leads to side effects occurrence. Topical medicines most often cause allergic contact dermatitis accompanied by burning, itching, tingling, stinging, and irritation. Oral drugs may cause abdominal cramps, upset stomach, headache, vertigo, skin rash, and taste and vision disturbances. Oral antifungals may also damage the liver or impair its functioning, especially if taken with alcohol.
Pregnant women are most often not recommended to undergo the treatment with antifungal medicines; while nursing mothers have to stop breastfeeding during the therapy period. In spite of these facts, clinical studies in women in their second and third trimesters of pregnancy did no show any dangerous side effects of the treatment with clotrimazole; thus this component is said to be relatively safe to be used during pregnancy (excluding the first trimester).
Lotrimin AF advantage is that it is highly potent against Candida albicans infections. Lamisil specific feature is that its main working ingredient accumulates in the skin during the treatment and keeps on working for some time after the therapy is stopped.
To sum it up, it is possible to say that the choice of antifungal medicines is quite wide for the patients to be able to find the most effective drug to treat this or that fungal infection. Moreover over-the-counter variants are relatively safe to use and their important benefit is that they are efficacious to kill a wide variety of fungi.
| Tip for you : Sign-in with Your OpenID and post faster, easier and with easy access to all your past posts. | |
|
Your Nick: |
