Introduction: Fungi belonging to the Malassezia genus may contribute to the indigenous skin flora. However, they may cause numerous skin diseases.
Aim: The objective of the study was to evaluate the occurrence of the yeast-like Malassezia fungi in materials originating from patients suspected of superficial mycosis and referred to the Department of Mycology at the Jagiellonian University Medical College Chair of Microbiology during a 16-year period from January 1, 1992 to December 31, 2007.
Material and methods: A total of 12321 clinical specimens were examined; fungi were detected in 5654 of them.
Results: The fungi were more often isolated from males than from females (49.8 vs. 42.9%). Malassezia fungi were isolated in 771 cases, more often from males (59.4%) than females (40.6%). The fungi were most frequently isolated from the scalp, trunk and face. Malassezia co-existed with other fungi only sporadically.
Conclusions: The retrospective 16-year analysis provided evidence that increases and decreases in the prevalence of Malassezia occurred in particular years.