ACUTE Diarrhea and Skin Symptoms

Acute, sudden onset diarrhea occurring together with skin symptoms, like itch, tingling, swelling or rash may be caused by: 

• Childhood viral infections, like measles, scarlatina, rubella, chicken pox, infectious mononucleosis
• Food allergies may cause itchy skin and urticaria (a patchy, pinkish, slightly raised bumpy or patchy rash, known as hives) - due to histamine released in the skin.
• Ciguatera fish poisoning after eating big tropical fish, like barracuda (Picture 1), amberjack, grouper, snapper, sturgeon, king mackerel or moray eel that have accumulated ciguatoxin from reef algae, mainly present in the Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, Bahamas, Hawaii, Indonesia, Micronesia or Australia (1). Symptoms – diarrhea, dizziness, lips or skin tingling and reversal of hot and cold sensation – may start from few minutes to 30 hours after fish intake, may last from several days to years (ciguatoxin is dissolved in body fats and then slowly released) and cease on their own through the time. There is no known diagnostic test and treatment for ciguatera poisoning; prevention is by avoiding eating big tropical fish.
  continue reading Diarrhea With Skin Rash, Itch, Tingling, Jaundice or Swelling

What Is a Rash?

A rash is any abnormal change in skin color or texture. Medical terminology of rashes.

What Is an Itch?

Itch is a sensation that provokes a desire to scratch. Itch diagnosis, prevention, and treatment.

Itchy vs. Non-itchy Rash

A presence of itch may help in a diagnosis of a rash. For example, bumps in keratosis pilaris usually do not itch, in acne occasionally, in folliculitis often, and in allergy (bumpy hives) regularly. Severity of itch sometimes reflects severity of the disorder, for example, mild psoriasis does not itch, but severe one does.

Here is a list of non-itchy rashes.

continue reading Itchy Rash

Skin Cancer – General Characteristics

Skin cancers are malignant growths on the skin. They mostly arise from the upper layer of the skin – epidermis. Skin cancers may develop anywhere on the skin, including the scalp, lips or under-nail skin.

Skin cancers are most common after 50 years of age, but they may occur at any time.

Any chronic skin growth or discoloration that increases in size with time is suspicious for a skin cancer.

Skin Cancer Causes and Risk Factors

Common Types of Skin Cancer

There are three common types of skin cancer:

• Basal cell carcinoma
• Squamous cell carcinoma
• Melanoma

continue reading Types of Skin Cancer – Pictures and Treatment

Itchy Rectum and Anus – Introduction

Anal canal is the last, 2-4 cm long part of the large intestine that ends with the anal opening (anus). Rectum is about 12 cm long part of large intestine between sygmoid colon and anal canal.

Picture of Rectum and Anal Canal

Rectum lesions actually doesn’t itch (but may be painful), since there are no itch receptors (special nerve endings) in rectal mucosa. However, changes may extend from rectum to anal mucosa or groin skin, and these may itch.

Poor Hygiene

Dried feces, dust, scaled skin cells, and sweat, one by one, or all together may cause itchy skin around the anus. Washing with warm or lukewarm water without soap is recommended. Moistened tissues may be used when anus is sensitive.

Dry Skin

Dry skin may cause anal itch, especially in old people and in those who frequently use hot showers or baths. Solution is in avoiding hot showers, and using moisturizing creams like glycerine (but not petroleum jelly like Vaseline).

Spicy Food

Certain foods such as hot spices, caffeine, beer, wine, carbonated beverages, prunes, figs, milk products, nuts, pop-corn, chocolate, tomatoes and citrus fruits cause anal itch, they should be avoided. In some cases irritation is caused by food allergy.

continue reading Itchy Rectum and Anus – Causes and Treatment

What is Sunburn?

Sunburn is a burn of the skin from ultraviolet (UV) radiation, either from the sun or UV-emitting lamps (tanning saloons). It appears as reddened and/or swollen, itchy, burning skin.

Sunburn occurs when sun exposure exceeds ability of skin pigment melanin to protect the skin.

On the cellular level, there is formation of sunburn toxins that cause skin inflammation, and decrease of Langerhans’ and mast cells (important immune cells).

continue reading Sunburn Itch – Prevention and Treatment

Psychological Causes of Facial Itch

A person who is not sure about the truth of just spoken words, rubbing his nose, or someone nervously touching his face all the time, are examples of psychological causes of facial itch.

Unwashed Face

Unwashed face may itch, especially around your eyes, nose and mouth. Washing in the morning, after the meal and before bed should help.
continue reading Itchy Face and Facial Rash – Causes, Treatment, Pictures

1. Non-Regular Washing

Sweat and dirt, mixed together and broken down by bacteria that normally live on the skin, is the main cause of itchy skin. Regular washing helps. 

2. Excessive Sweating (Hyperhidrosis)

A cause of excessive sweating (hyperhidrosis) is not certain. Excessive sweating may appear only in the armpits or also on the face, hands or feet.
continue reading Itchy Armpits – Causes and Symptoms

1. Non-Washed Hair

When hair (especially oily hair) is not washed frequently enough, skin cells build up on the scalp and cause itch and dandruff. Prevention is by washing hair at least once a week.

2. Dry Scalp Skin

Dry scalp skin lacking the protective oil layer, is vulnerable to infections, and easily gets irritated. From the top of the head or hairline skin cells in the form of white dust (dry dandruff) may shed. Common causes of dry flaky scalp are:

• Frequent hair washing with hot water and aggressive shampoos
• Holding hair dryer close to the head
• Cold windy weather in combination with dry air from indoor heating

Prevention is by using “shampoos for dry hair”.

continue reading Itchy Scalp – Pictures, Causes and Treatment

What is Jock Itch?

Jock refers to “a person trained to participate in competitive sports”; the term is usually used for young male athletes.

Picture 1. Jock itch – Tinea cruris (source: Samuel Freire da Silva, M.D., atlasdermatologico << click and search for ‘Tinea cruris’ for additional images)

Jock itch (other names: Tinea cruris, tinea or ringworm of the groin, dhobi itch, scrot rot) is a fungal infection affecting the moist skin on the inner thighs, genitals, anal area or buttocks, appearing in both men and women. Affected skin is covered by red or brown rash that may be ring-shaped. Rash may itch or burn; affected skin may peel off or crack.

continue reading Jock Itch – Pictures, Causes and Treatment

A. Environmental Causes of Itchy Skin

1. Dry Skin

Dry skin (xerosis, winter itch) is common, especially in old people, and may be caused by cold weather, wind, sunburns, prolonged water exposure, frequent hot baths and using soaps (also washing powder and household cleansers) that can thin the protective oil layer on the skin and thus enable losing water through the skin.

2. Sweating

Microbes from a normal skin flora break down the sweat (especially in the armpits and groin) and yield substances that cause itch. Excessive sweatingcan be observed in persons with primary hyperhidrosis (increased activity of sympathetic nerves, possibly caused by psychological reasons), or secondary hyperhidrosis (in elevated levels of thyroxine, in tuberculosis or malignancies).

continue reading Causes of Itchy Skin