Sporotrichosis – causes, side effects and treatments at NaturalPedia.com

Wednesday, August 08, 2018 by Ralph Flores

Sporotrichosis, which also goes by the name “rose gardener’s disease,” is a rare fungal infection caused by Sporothrix schenckii. In particular, a person is infected with sporotrichosis when S. schenckii spores – which are present in soil and plant matter such as moss, rose bushes (thus the moniker), and hay – enter the skin through a small cut or scrape while handling contaminated matter. It can also occur following animal scratches or bites, in particular, from cats.

There are three types of sporotrichosis:

Cutaneous (skin) sporotrichosis. The most common form of the infection, cutaneous sporotrichosis occurs when a wound is exposed to materials with S. schnenckii.
Pulmonary (lung) sporotrichosis. A condition which occurs after inhalation of fungal spores, usually from the environment.
Disseminated sporotrichosis. A very rare but serious infection that happens when sporotrichosis affects other parts of the body. This is commonly seen in people with compromised immune systems.

Known risk factors and symptoms of sporotrichosis

A person with sporotrichosis will usually see its first symptoms on the finger. At first, this will appear to be a small, painless nodule (bump), which will slowly enlarge and develop into an open sore. As the infection spreads, this will create more nodules and open sores – pus from the lymph nodes, especially, may drain infected material through the skin. However, sufferers feel little to no pain.

Other forms of sporotrichosis are uncommon. If the lung is infected, this can result in slight chest pain, accompanied by coughing, while joint infections cause swelling and make movement painful.

The condition is rarely fatal, except for those with compromised immune systems as the infection may spread throughout the body and result in severe complications.

Body systems affected by sporotrichosis

For the most part, sporotrichosis does not lead to complications in people with a healthy immune system. However, those with weakened immunity are at risk, including:

Bone infection
Joint pain and inflammation
Lung infection
Meningitis
Chronic diseases

Food items or nutrients that may prevent or relieve sporotrichosis

Recommended food items to treat fungal infections, including sporotrichosis, are:

Coconuts
Garlic
Oregano
Pumpkin seeds
Onions

Treatment and management options for sporotrichosis

Traditional remedies may help minimize the risk of fungal infections like sporotrichosis. It can also keep these at bay. In earlier studies, researchers found some essential oils to have potent antifungal properties. These included allicin (which is extracted from garlic), citronella oil (from the leaves of lemongrass), tea tree oil, coconut oil, orange oil, Neem seed oil, and palmarosa oil. They also found that zinc, selenium, and iodine to be essential nutrients to manage the condition.