Onychoscopic evaluation of distal and lateral subungual onychomycosis: A cross-sectional study in Lebanon

 The aim of this study was to evaluate the onychoscopic patterns associated with distal lateral subungual onychomycosis (DLSO) in Lebanon. The present study was conducted on 45 patients with clinical DLSO attending two dermatology clinics in Beirut, Lebanon, between January 2018 and April 2018. The patients were subjected to dermoscopy to identify the onychoscopic patterns.

The DLSO was predominantly associated with white, yellow, and brown color changes (P<0.05). Dermoscopic patterns of longitudinal striae (n=31; 68.75%), spiked pattern (n=25; 55.5%), and jagged pattern (n=25; 55.5%) were significantly correlated with DLSO (P<0.001). Our findings are in accordance with five previous reports in which dermoscopic findings are discussed in onychomycosis.

It is recommended to perform further studies on homogeneous groups with different clinical subtypes of onychomycosis including patients with suspected traumatic onycholysis or other nail diseases. Identification of onychoscopic patterns would offer the clinicians a quick, simple, and complementary tool for the diagnosis of onychomycosis.