Jock Itch: Symptoms, Causes and Treatment

The name makes it seem like it is no big deal. The name also makes it seem trivial. Yet, jock itch is not trivial. It can be annoying. It can be painful. If you are suffering from it or have suffered from it, you can attest to this fact. And listen up, women as well as men can have jock itch.

Okay, lets start at the beginning. Exactly what is jock itch?

It’s medical name is tinea cruris. It is a fungal infection. This means it is caused by having to much fungus in a particular area, the groin area, the inner thigh area and the buttocks. The main reason this fungus can grow in this particular area is the fact that fungus loves moist and warm areas. It can grow in these types of conditions, sometimes steadily.

What does it look like? It can cause the skin to become pinkish and red. Plus, there is usually a bit of itching along with it. (Thus the name). This redness often times will form a circular pattern. A person may also suffer a burning like feeling, along with flaky and peeling skin.

The other causes of jock are wearing underwear that is too tight, sweating too much or wearing sweat filled clothes for a long period of time (example would be after exercising). Sometimes being overweight can also cause one to be more vulnerable to jock itch.

Jock itch is contiguous, but only mildly. The best way one can catch jock itch from another person is through sexual contact or sharing towels or clothing of an infected person. Yes, this means women, too can catch jock itch. Often times, when a man has jock itch a physician will recommend his sexual partners to begin treatment, too, just in case the partner had any contact to the infections.

What are the best treatment options for jock itch? Antifungual creams and sprays are the medications that are often prescribed. Yet, these can also be bought over the counter. A person should also make every attempt possible in keeping that area of his or her body dry. That is why many physicians recommends using a antifungual powder in that area, as well. You can even by the powder in spray form for easy application.

Yet, be warned that you should not overmedicate the area. You might think by using the medication more often, the infection and the symptoms would heal quicker. This is not the case. In actuallities, using the medication more often that you should, could result in more problems. Be sure to read the labels on all medications and follow them as prescribed.

Some ways to avoid jock itch are:

keeping your skin clean and dry

Wearing clean underwear

Changing underwear whenever they become sweaty

Wearing light underwear, especially in hot weather

Wearing underwear that actually fits and are not too tight

People who have diabetes and HIV or AIDS are more prone to jock itch, because their immune systems are all ready compromised.

You don’t necessarily need to see a doctor for jock itch. You can buy many good anti-fungus creams over the counter, without a prescription, that will kill the unhealthy fungus that is causing the infection. But if you have any of these symptoms, you should see a physician:

excessive redness

swelling

drainage

Fever

If you do have to see a physician, he/she may diagnose your condition just by sight or he/she may take a culture test. A culture test is a simple scraping of the skin. This little scraping would then be sent to a lab and analyzed to see if it will grow fungi. The scraping is very simple and should not be that uncomfortable.

The fungus that causes jock itch is the same that causes athlete’s foot and ringworm. If you have either at the same time you have jock itch, you should treat it with the same medication to help stop all the fungus from growing and spreading. In fact, often times, jock itch actually is caused from the spread of athlete’s foot, so be sure to treat it.

Jock itch isn’t life threatening. But it is annoying and as its name implies, it is itchy. Seek treatment and don’t laugh the next time you hear the term jock itch, remember it wouldn’t be a laughing matter if you had the itch.