Tinea corporis caused by Microsporum gallinae: first clinical case in Japan.

We report herein a case of tinea corporis caused by Microsporum gallinae in a 96-year-old, otherwise healthy Japanese man. The patient had a long working history as a breeder of fighting cocks, and he suffered from two erythematous macules after being bitten by a cock. M. gallinae was identified as the infectious agent based on the morphology of isolates cultured on slides and analysis of DNA sequences of the internal transcribed spacers (ITS) from ribosomal DNA from cultured isolates. The patient was successfully treated with antifungal ointments. To our knowledge, this is the first case of M. gallinae infection in a human reported in Japan.