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Dr. Chrysoula I. Liakou MD, PhD
- Treated online: Yes, usually. A doctor can recognise scalp ringworm on photos, arrange samples and prescribe antifungal tablets and shampoo; a kerion or an unclear diagnosis needs an examination.
- What it is: a fungal infection of the scalp and hair, not a worm, causing itchy, scaly patches, broken hairs and hair loss.
- Who gets it: mostly children aged 3 to 7, but adults catch it from children, pets, shared combs and barbers’ clippers.
- Treatment: antifungal tablets for at least 4 weeks, usually 4 to 8, because creams cannot reach the fungus inside the hair. Shampoo helps stop the spread.
- Emergency: call 112 for sudden swelling of the lips, mouth, throat or tongue, or difficulty breathing, after a new medicine.
Do not book a video appointment if your lips, mouth, throat or tongue suddenly swell, you are struggling to breathe, or your skin or lips turn blue, grey or pale after a new medicine, or you have a hot, swollen, very painful scalp with a high temperature and feel very unwell. Call 112 or go to an emergency department.
Can an online doctor treat scalp ringworm?
Yes, usually. Scalp ringworm is recognised from how the patches look and how you might have caught it, which a doctor can see on clear photos and on camera. The doctor arranges a sample of scale and hair at a laboratory near you to confirm the fungus, prescribes antifungal tablets and a medicated shampoo, and explains how to stop it spreading to the people and pets you live with. A kerion, a painful, swollen patch with pus, an unclear diagnosis or a weakened immune system means an examination in person.
How an online consultation helps with scalp ringworm
- The diagnosis checked: Dandruff, psoriasis and alopecia areata can look similar, and need different treatment.
- Tablets that cure it: Creams and shampoos alone cannot reach the fungus inside the hair, so tablets are needed.
- Everyone treated: People you live with may need checking or treating at the same time, and pets need a vet.
- The spread stopped: Combs, clippers, hats and pillows, and when it is safe to share again.
What the doctor checks in an online consultation for scalp ringworm
The doctor asks about the warning signs first, then about the patches and how you might have caught them. The doctor asks about:
- Warning signs: a painful, swollen, boggy patch, pus, a high temperature, or swollen glands in the neck.
- The patches: how long you have had them, itching, scaling, broken hairs or black dots, and hair loss.
- Contacts: children in the home with scalp ringworm, pets with patches of missing fur, barbers and shared combs or clippers, and contact sports.
- Ringworm elsewhere: on the body, groin, feet or nails.
- Your health: diabetes, steroids, chemotherapy or other reasons your immune system may be weaker.
- Before tablets: liver or kidney problems, your other medicines, and pregnancy or breastfeeding.
Before the call, take close-up photos of each patch in bright daylight, with the hair parted around it, and a photo from further away.
What is scalp ringworm (tinea capitis)?
Scalp ringworm, or tinea capitis, is a fungal infection of the scalp and the hair. Despite its name, it has nothing to do with worms. The fungus grows on the skin and inside the hairs, which then break off at or near the scalp, leaving scaly patches of hair loss.
It is most common in children aged 3 to 7, but adults get it too, and it is often missed in adults. The fungus comes from two main sources: other people, including people who carry it without symptoms, and animals, especially cats and dogs. In the UK, the most common type spreads easily in afro-textured hair.
How do you get ringworm on your scalp?
Through close contact with an infected person or animal, or with things that carry the fungus, such as combs, hairbrushes, hats, pillows, towels and barbers’ clippers. Adults often catch it from a child at home or from clippers that have not been cleaned between customers.
Is scalp ringworm contagious?
Yes. It spreads from person to person, from pets and through shared objects, which is why people you live with may need checking and treatment at the same time.
What does scalp ringworm look like?
Usually one or more itchy, scaly patches of hair loss, with broken hairs that can look like black dots on the scalp. Sometimes it looks like dandruff, and sometimes it becomes a painful, swollen lump with pus, called a kerion.
Swipe sideways to compare →
| Type | What you notice |
|---|---|
| Grey patch | Fine scaling and patchy hair loss, with dull grey hairs |
| Black dot | Hairs broken off at the scalp, leaving black dots |
| Diffuse scale | Scaling that looks like dandruff, with little or no hair loss |
| Pustular | Patchy hair loss with spots or pus-filled bumps around the hairs |
| Kerion | A painful, swollen, boggy lump with pus and hair loss, which can look like an abscess |
| Favus | Yellow, cup-shaped crusts; rare |
Itching, redness and swollen glands at the back of the neck are common. Some people get a separate itchy rash elsewhere on the body, often after starting treatment: it is a reaction to the fungus, not a spread of the infection.
What is a kerion?
A kerion is the most inflamed form of scalp ringworm: a painful, swollen, boggy patch with pus and hair loss, which can look like an abscess and is often mistaken for a bacterial infection. Some people also feel unwell with a high temperature. It is treated with antifungal tablets, usually for at least 6 to 8 weeks, with antibiotics only if bacteria are also present, and it needs prompt care because a long-standing kerion can scar the follicles and leave permanent hair loss.
What can be mistaken for scalp ringworm?
Dandruff and seborrhoeic dermatitis, scalp psoriasis, alopecia areata and a bacterial abscess. Scale with broken hairs, black dots or swollen neck glands points to ringworm, and a sample confirms it. See seborrhoeic dermatitis, psoriasis and alopecia areata.
How is scalp ringworm diagnosed?
The doctor makes a likely diagnosis from the patches and your story, and confirms it with a sample: scale scraped gently from the patch and a few plucked hairs, sent to a laboratory. Looking at the sample under a microscope can confirm a fungus quickly; growing it in culture identifies which fungus it is, which guides the choice of tablet, but takes up to 4 weeks. Treatment usually starts before the culture result is back.
A dermatologist may also look at the scalp with a magnifier or an ultraviolet lamp, under which some types glow green.
How do you get rid of scalp ringworm?
With antifungal tablets, taken for at least 4 weeks and usually 4 to 8 in adults, plus a medicated shampoo to stop the fungus spreading. Creams and shampoos alone cannot cure it, because they cannot reach the fungus inside the hair follicle.
Antifungal tablets
Terbinafine, griseofulvin, itraconazole and fluconazole are used. Which one suits you depends on the fungus, your other medicines, your liver and kidneys, and pregnancy or breastfeeding. Finish the whole course, even when the scalp looks better.
Antifungal shampoo
A ketoconazole or selenium sulfide shampoo reduces the spores you shed, so you are less likely to pass the infection on. It is used alongside the tablets, and sometimes by the people you live with.
Does scalp ringworm go away on its own?
Not reliably, and while it lasts it can spread to others. With tablets, the non-inflamed types usually clear well and the hair grows back. A kerion or a long-neglected infection can scar the follicles, and hair does not regrow through scar.
Terbinafine safety
Common side effects include a rash, headache, an upset stomach and a change or loss of taste, which usually recovers after stopping. Stop the tablets and contact a doctor straight away for yellow skin or eyes, dark pee or pale poo, bruising or infections more easily, severe pain at the top of the stomach spreading to the back, or a high temperature with a rash and unusual tiredness.
A prescription is never issued without a consultation. If the doctor prescribes, use the prescription at a pharmacy near you.
Which scalp ringworm treatment might the doctor recommend?
Treatment depends on the type, the fungus, your health and who else may be infected. This is the framework the doctors use:
Swipe sideways to compare →
| What you have | Likely first step | Suitable for online care? | When in-person care is needed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Itchy, scaly patches with broken hairs | A sample, then antifungal tablets and shampoo | Yes | For the sample, at a laboratory |
| A child at home has scalp ringworm, and you have scaling | A sample, shampoo, and tablets if confirmed | Yes | The child needs a paediatrician or local doctor |
| A pet with patches of missing fur | Treatment for you, and a vet for the pet | Yes | Not usually needed |
| A painful, swollen, boggy patch with pus | Antifungal tablets started promptly, after an examination | Partly | Promptly, to confirm it is a kerion and not an abscess |
| A weakened immune system, or patches that do not clear | Samples and specialist advice | Partly | For an examination and dermatology care |
Itchy, scaly patches on your scalp? A doctor can check them and start treatment in one consultation.
See available times →How to stop scalp ringworm spreading
- Start treatment as soon as possible.
- Do not share combs, hairbrushes, hats, pillows or towels, and clean combs and brushes or replace them.
- Wash towels and bedding regularly.
- Ask your barber how clippers are cleaned between customers, and tell them if you are being treated.
- Have the people you live with checked, especially children, and treat everyone affected at the same time.
- Take a pet with patches of missing fur to the vet.
- Do not scratch the patches, which can spread the fungus to other parts of your body.
Children can go to school or nursery once they have started treatment.
Special situations
Ringworm on the body, groin or feet
Ringworm elsewhere on the skin is usually treated with a cream, and the same fungus can move between areas. See ringworm, jock itch and athlete’s foot.
A weakened immune system
Diabetes, steroids, chemotherapy and other conditions that weaken the immune system make scalp ringworm more likely in adults, so the doctor may arrange closer follow-up or specialist care.
Pregnancy and breastfeeding
Tell the doctor if you are pregnant, breastfeeding or planning a pregnancy, because it changes which antifungal tablet is suitable.
Children
Scalp ringworm is most common in children, who need treatment with tablets too. Mobi Doctor consultations are for adults aged 18 and over. A child who is unwell needs a paediatrician or a local doctor in person, and emergency signs in a child mean 112.
When scalp ringworm is treated online, and when you need in-person care
Treated online: recognising scalp ringworm on photos, arranging samples, prescribing antifungal tablets and shampoo, advice for the household and pets, and follow-up on photos.
In-person care: taking the sample at a laboratory, a kerion or a patch that could be an abscess, an unclear diagnosis, a weakened immune system, and infections that do not clear.
When to get in-person care
Call 112 or go to an emergency department now for:
- sudden swelling of the lips, mouth, throat or tongue after a new medicine
- struggling to breathe, or skin or lips turning blue, grey or pale
- a hot, swollen, very painful scalp with a high temperature and feeling very unwell
Get medical advice the same day for:
- a painful, swollen, boggy patch on the scalp, or pus
- yellow skin or eyes, dark pee or pale poo while taking antifungal tablets
- a high temperature with a rash and unusual tiredness while taking antifungal tablets
How Mobi Doctor works
- Book a time that suits you: daily 7am–11pm CEST. You can see a doctor over video, usually within 15 minutes. No subscription, and the exact price is shown before you pay.
- Speak to a licensed doctor about your scalp: show the patches on camera and say who you live with, whether you have pets, and where you have your hair cut.
- Leave with a plan: where to have the sample taken, what to take and for how long, what to do at home, and which signs mean you should be seen in person. If the doctor prescribes, use the prescription at a pharmacy near you.
No sign-up needed
Not sure it’s scalp ringworm? Tick every symptom you have to see each condition page that mentions it. It finds the right page, not a diagnosis: a doctor gives you that on a video call.
Tap the body — an area or a point — to browse symptoms anywhere
Similar symptoms, different condition? Alopecia Areata can start the same way. Compare them, or look up any other symptom in the full symptom checker.
Frequently asked questions about scalp ringworm
What is tinea capitis?
A fungal infection of the scalp and hair, also called scalp ringworm. It causes itchy, scaly patches, broken hairs and hair loss. It has nothing to do with worms.
What are the first symptoms of tinea capitis?
Itching and a scaly patch, often like dandruff, with hairs that break off at the scalp. Patches of hair loss and swollen glands at the back of the neck can follow.
How do you get rid of tinea capitis?
Tinea capitis is cleared with antifungal tablets for at least 4 weeks, usually 4 to 8 in adults, plus a medicated shampoo to stop the spread. Creams and shampoos alone cannot cure it.
Does tinea capitis ever go away?
Tinea capitis does not reliably go away on its own, and it can spread while it lasts. With tablets it usually clears and the hair grows back, unless a kerion has scarred the follicles.
What can be mistaken for tinea capitis?
Dandruff, seborrhoeic dermatitis, scalp psoriasis, alopecia areata and a bacterial abscess can all be mistaken for tinea capitis, and in adults it is often missed because it can look like ordinary dandruff. The clues to ringworm are patches of broken hairs or hair loss with scale, itching, and sometimes swollen glands at the back of the neck; a sample of scale and hair sent to the laboratory confirms it.
What causes scalp ringworm, and how do you get it?
You get ringworm on your scalp from an infected person or animal, or from shared combs, hats, pillows, towels and barbers’ clippers. Adults often catch it from a child at home.
What is a kerion?
The most inflamed form of scalp ringworm: a painful, swollen, boggy patch with pus, which can look like an abscess. It needs prompt antifungal tablets and can scar if left untreated.
What can I do at home while scalp ringworm is treated?
Take the antifungal tablets every day for the full course, even once the scalp looks better, because stopping early lets scalp ringworm return; use the antifungal shampoo as directed, which cuts the spores you shed; wash pillowcases, hats, towels and combs on a hot wash and do not share them; and check pets for bald or scaly patches. Do not pick or scrub the patches, and do not use steroid creams on them unless a doctor advises.
Can adults get scalp ringworm?
Yes. Scalp ringworm is most common in children, but adults catch it from children, pets and clippers, and it is often missed in adults because it can look like dandruff.
Is scalp ringworm contagious?
Yes. Scalp ringworm is contagious: it spreads through close contact and through shared combs, brushes, hats, pillows, towels and clippers, and from infected pets, so the people you live with may need checking and treating at the same time, and pets with bald or scaly patches need a vet. Antifungal shampoo for everyone in the household reduces spread while the tablets work.
How can I prevent scalp ringworm?
Do not share combs, brushes, hats, helmets, pillows or towels; make sure barbers and hairdressers disinfect clippers and scissors between clients; wash hands after handling pets and get a vet to check any animal with bald or scaly patches, since cats and farm animals carry the fungus; keep the scalp clean and dry; and if someone at home has scalp ringworm, treat them fully and consider antifungal shampoo for everyone else.
Will my hair grow back after scalp ringworm?
Usually, yes, once the scalp ringworm has cleared, because the fungus breaks the hairs rather than destroying the follicles. A kerion can leave permanent bald patches.
Can an online doctor treat scalp ringworm?
Yes, usually. A doctor can recognise scalp ringworm on photos, arrange a sample and prescribe antifungal tablets and shampoo. A kerion or an unclear diagnosis needs an examination.
- Ringworm, NHS, National Health Service (UK), reviewed 3 August 2023.
- Tinea capitis, DermNet, New Zealand, updated August 2024.
- Tinea capitis (scalp ringworm) in adults, Hair GP, medically reviewed, updated 30 September 2026.
- Side effects of terbinafine, NHS, National Health Service (UK), reviewed 24 March 2023.
- Ringworm, HSE, Health Service Executive (Ireland), reviewed 1 July 2024.
- Kerion, DermNet, New Zealand, updated May 2024.
This page is for information only and is not a substitute for a medical consultation. Guideline links are provided for transparency; treatment decisions are made with your doctor.
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