Historical treatments have used alcoholic tinctures of heavy metals, such as mercury bichloride. The application of antifungal shampoos such as pyrithione zinc, formaldehyde and salicylic acid is effective against black piedra. Oral therapy with itraconazole or terbinafine also causes nodules to break down over time. Removal of affected hair and treatment with topical agents is also effective and results in very low recurrences rates. However, even in the absence of treatment, spontaneous remission may occur.Terbinafine has been used in the treatment. Cosmetic uses
Black piedra is sometimes cultivated for cosmetic purposes due to social factors that favour a specific hair colour, which makes them more attractive in their society. Several Indian tribes located from Panama have been known to use several methods in order to darken the hair of albino individuals within their community. One of these methods is the cultivation of black piedra for an extensive period of time in the individuals hair. In Malaysia the nodules of black piedra are very attractive and women are encouraged to sleep with their hair buried in the soil to encourage growth of the black nodules. Similar taxa
The genus Piedraia contains another species known as Piedraia quintanilhae, which is more common in chimpanzees than humans. It differs from P. hortae in terms of the ascospores do not have any attachments. Another species known as Trichosporon biegelii is commonly known to cause white piedra . White piedra is more common in temperate and semitropical climates, such as South America, Asia, Europe, Japan, and parts of the southern United States.
Black piedra usually affects scalp hair, whereas white piedra is more commonly found in pubic hair, axillary hair, beards, moustaches, and eyelashes. White piedra affects horses and monkeys, in addition to humans and the nodules are white and brown in colour and can be easily detached from the hair shaft. White piedra is treated by using topical and antifungal agents, but a more effective approach is to use itraconazole therapy. Recent studies have shown that the black, lichen-colonizing fungus, Xanthoriicola physciae, is closely related to P. hortae. See also
White piedra
Piedra

References


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