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Athlete's foot can cause lots of different symptoms, but you probably won't get all of them. The longer you have athlete's foot, the worse your symptoms are likely to be.¹

Some people with athlete's foot don't have any symptoms at all. These people never know they have the infection. But they can still pass it on to others.²

If you have athlete's foot, you may get the following symptoms.^{1 2 3 4}

• Itchy feeling between your toes, especially between your two smallest ones.
• Stinging or burning between your toes.
• Thickened skin on your feet.
• Cracked or peeling skin.
• Blisters on your feet.
• Red patches of skin with a white, wet-looking surface.

If your athlete's foot gets worse, you may get other symptoms.

• The skin on the soles of your feet may get thick and look leathery and red. This means the infection has spread to the sole of your foot. ^{2 5}
• You may have a ring of scaly, reddish, raised skin on another part of your body, such as your leg. This is sometimes called ringworm, but it has nothing to do with worms.⁴ It's caused by the same types of fungus that give you athlete's foot. And it can be treated with the same medicine.

• You may have raised bumps or ridges on the soles of your feet.⁴ These can be very itchy.
• Your skin may get hot, red and swollen. This could mean that you have a bacterial infection, too.³ You'll need to take antibiotic treatment to get rid of this. Otherwise it may spread.⁶ If you think you have a bacterial infection as well as athlete's foot, see your doctor.

This information is for educational use only, and is not a substitute for prompt professional medical advice. Readers should always consult a physician or other professional for advice and treatment. ©BMJ Publishing Group Limited 2008. All rights reserved.