Germany/Thailand - This vacation souvenir makes your crotch itch! Travelers to the Far East in particular are currently in for a nasty surprise. The so-called "Thailand fungus" is increasingly ending up in tourists' luggage and is now also spreading in Germany.

As reported by"Medical Tribune", numerous dermatologists are currently warning against the pathogen Trichophyton mentagrophytes type VII.

This is the first skin fungus that is sexually transmitted. Normally, similar pathogens only spread through animals such as mice, but in recent years doctors have noticed an increase in infections through human physical contact.

Sexual intercourse fulfills the conditions, but even an intimate embrace or a simple handshake can spread the fungus, which is highly contagious. Shaving in the genital area also increases the risk.

This can be quite uncomfortable for those affected. An infection usually begins with an itchy crotch or buttocks, a circular rash and redness. Painful abscesses then form.

"There are always pronounced inflammations, both on the hair shaft and along the gland ducts, which then lead to massive pustules, i.e. purulent changes and pronounced fistulas," specialist Prof. Norbert Brockmeyer explained to Apotheken-Umschau.

This can be accompanied by fever and pain so severe that you can no longer sit. In this case, hospitalization and surgery to remove the purulent fistula may be necessary. However, the fungus is not life-threatening.

It got its nickname because the first infection was detected in travelers returning from Thailand, followed later by cases in holidaymakers from other Asian countries and Egypt.

In the supposed vacation paradises, the danger lurks in contaminated towels or bed linen - and wherever skin meets skin. But the popular nickname is actually rather misleading. In Germany, the skin fungus has long been spreading without the need to travel abroad first.

"In the last few months in particular, we have seen a lot of patients with these infections in our outpatient clinic, mainly in the genital area, but also on other parts of the body - usually several patients a week," Dr. Julia Huynh from the Charité hospital in Berlin told Apotheken Umschau.

The wave of infections had already blossomed during the coronavirus pandemic, as dermatologist Hans-Jürgen Tietz explained in an interview withFocus. The closure of brothels and the shift of sex work to illegal activities had encouraged this process.

"The fungus has long been endemic in our country," said the doctor.