Onychomycosis in Patients with Severe Motor and Intellectual Disabilities

In recent years, the lifespans of individuals with severe motor and intellectual disabilities (SMID) have progressed with the development of medical care and nursing practices. Respiratory disorders account for a large proportion of medical care for younger individuals with SMID, while the proportion of gastrointestinal and urinary system diseases increases with the aging of this population. Various efforts are being made to improve quality of life (QOL), including for the families of patients with SMID in medical care, but few reports have examined issues of foot care, particularly onychomycosis. Appropriate management is important because onychomycosis not only affects the QOL of patients with SMID, but also serves as a source of infection for caregivers. In this first report on the actual situation of onychomycosis among patients with SMID in long-term care facilities, five cases of onychomycosis are presented. The mean age for the five cases was 58 years, and the mean length of hospitalization was 41 years. Mean Scoring Clinical Index for Onychomycosis, which evaluates the severity of tinea unguium, was 16.73. All causative fungi for onychomycosis were Trichophyton rubrum.