Prevalence of Pityrosporum orbiculare on normal skin of Iraqi children

To determine the age incidence and prevalence of Pityrosporum orbiculare on the normal skin of healthy Iraqi children, we carried out a survey of clinically normal skin of 110 healthy children in Baghdad during April 1998-October 1998. We isolated P. orbiculare on a peptone--glucose--yeast extract medium containing chloramphenicol and cycloheximide, and overlaid with olive oil. The organism was present on the trunk in 77.5% of children 10-14 years, 27.5% of children 5-9 years, and 6.6% of children < 5 years