Disseminated dermatophytic pseudomycetoma caused by Microsporum species.

Background: Dermatophyte infection is almost exclusively a superficial cutaneous mycosis usually confined to the stratum corneum of nails and hairs of normal hosts. Deep cutaneous and subcutaneous infections due to dermatophytes are exceedingly rare and usually limited to immunosuppressed individuals. These infections remain chronic and persist in spite of treatment.

The nail plate biopsy may pick up gout crystals and other crystals.

The rewarding use of nail clippings processed histologically for the diagnosis of some nail diseases is well established. A new application of the nail plate biopsies (NPBs) is the detection of crystals in the subungual horn. Besides other subungual crystals, urate crystals are heretofore undescribed.