Hey folks... Ringworm (aka Tinea) is NOT a virus. It's a fungus. There are a number of different labels for it: Tinea cruris - aka jock itch, ringworm of the groin Tinea corporis - ringworm of the body/face Tinea manum - ringworm of the hand Tinea incognito Tinea capitis - ringworm of the scalp Tinea barbae - ringworm of the beard Tinea versicolor etc etc etc These names are descriptive of the location, there are a number of specific fungi which can cause ringworm. There are ringworm fungi in 3 genera: Microsporum, Trichophyton, and Epidermophyton. There can also be secondary infections from other organisms. (Tinea versicolor is a bit different: it is caused by an overgrowth of a yeast that is part of the normal skin flora, and no one really knows if it's contagious or not.) Not all ringworm looks like rings. Fluorescing: Wood's light (light with a wavelength above 365 nm) will reveal SOME Tinea, but not all: - M. canis and M. audouinii will cause scalp hair (but *not* the scalp iteslf) to fluoresce blue-green - T. schoenleinii will also cause scalp hair to fluroresce, but a palerr green. No other hair-infections fluoresce. Skin Tinea infections do not fluoresce, escept for Tinea versicolor, which glows pale white-yellow. There are other things that can be mistaken for Tinea which also fluoresce, including bacteria. Tinea is usually treated with steroidal antifungals, topical and/or oral. I'm not a dermatologist, so I'm not going to state any specific medications. There's at least one over-the-counter shampoo that may help, though, for mild cases. (Belgian Green..... ____ Blue :-)) My dermatology book states that zoophilic infections (animal to human infection) are possible. In the case of tinea capitis, it lists dogs, cats, mokeys, rabbits, guinea pigs and cattle as possible culprits. Not all animals transmit all varieties. There can also be geophilic infection (infection from dermatophytes that live in the soil), and human-to-human infection. Some of the fungi can live on humans but not on animals, too. All factoids from _Clinical Dermatology, 2nd ed_, Thomas P. Habif, Baltimore:Mosby, 1990, Chapter 13. Hope this helps -- or at least gives you a little more info. Frequent washing is a good idea. I had a VERY annoying case of Tinea versicolor a number of years ago. I cleaned my clothes and bedding constantly, showered with prescription orange goop.... but it finally took oral medication to get rid of it, for me anyway. Megan -- mailto:[log in to unmask] Manassas, VA "'Progress in ethics is the only cure for progress in science.'" -- Freeman Dyson quoting Haldane, JPL 1994 [Posted in FML issue 3295]