[Tinea capitis presenting as staphylococcal pyodermatitis of the scalp]

Two severe cases of pyoderma (staphylococcus aureus) of the scalp, resistant to appropriate antibiotic treatment, proved to be due to exotic dermatophytes (Trichophyton soudanense and Trichophyton violaceum) in two North African children living in France. Both cases exemplify the growing number of Tinea capitis due to anthropophilic species imported from Africa by immigrated populations, their sometimes atypical clinical presentation and their familial epidemiology. Fungal cultures and identification procedures are essential for the diagnosis and epidemiological investigation of such cases.