ABSTRACT
INTRODUCTION The cutaneous manifestations of fungal diseases are frequently seen in clinical practice. Indeed, they represent the most common forms of fungal disease. They develop in compromised patients and in healthy individuals as well. Humans and animals contract most fungal, actinomycetal, and algal infections by exposure to infectious cells (propagules) usually originating from saprophytes growing in nature. More than 100,000 different species of these microorganisms are ubiquitous in the environment but before the HIV pandemic, only about 150 were recognized to cause disease. Some of these are familiar pathogens, but many more are opportunists and of such low virulence that they seldom cause invasive infection in the healthy, immunocompetent host. A few, such as the agents of actinomycosis and candidiasis, are endogenous and constitute part of the normal body biocenosis.
