Skin Advice
Skin Rashes Explained in Depth
A rash is an area of irritated or swollen skin. It might be red and itchy, bumpy, scaly, crusty or blistered. Rashes are a symptom of many different medical conditions. Things that can cause a rash include other diseases, irritating substances, allergies and your genetic makeup.
Contact dermatitis is a common cause of rashes. It causes redness, itching and burning where you have touched an irritant, such as a chemical, or something you are allergic to, like poison ivy.
Some rashes develop immediately. Others form over several days. If you scratch your rash, it might take longer to heal. The treatment for a rash usually depends on its cause. Options include moisturizers, lotions, baths, cortisone creams that relieve swelling, and antihistamines, which relieve itching.
Skin Rashes in Depth Resources:
- Allergic Contact Rashes(American Academy of Dermatology)
- Contact Dermatitis(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
- Itching and Noninfectious Rashes(Merck & Co., Inc.)
- Health Tip: Recognizing a Skin Allergy(09/07/2010, HealthDay)
- Skin Rashes and Other Changes (American Academy of Family Physicians)
- “Hot Tub Rash” and “Swimmer’s Ear” (Pseudomonas) (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) – PDF
- Breast Rash(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
- Cercarial Dermatitis: Swimmer’s Itch(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
- Hand Rashes(American Osteopathic College of Dermatology)
- Nickel Allergy(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
- Perioral Dermatitis(American Academy of Dermatology)
- Prickly Heat (Miliaria)(Merck & Co., Inc.)
- Scratching the Surface on Skin Allergies(American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology) – PDF
- Two Cents about Nickel(American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology) – PDF
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Pictures & Photographs
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Allergic Contact Dermatitis(Logical Images)
- Drug Rash (Unclassified Drug Eruption) in Adults(Logical Images)
- Dyshidrotic Eczema(Logical Images)
- Heat Rash or Prickly Heat (Miliaria Rubra)(Logical Images)
- Irritant Contact Dermatitis(Logical Images)
- Pityriasis Rosea(Logical Images)
- Viral Exanthem(Logical Images)
- Rash (Generalized) (DSHI Systems)
- Rash (Hives)(DSHI Systems)
- Rash (Localized)(DSHI Systems)
- Scalp Rash(DSHI Systems)
- Atlas of Human Body: Skin (American Medical Association)
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Dermatitis, Contact(National Institutes of Health)
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Dermatitis(National Institutes of Health)
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Diaper Rash(National Institutes of Health)
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Exanthema(National Institutes of Health)
- Chronic Itchy Skin Rashes in Children(Logical Images)
- Diaper Rash(American Academy of Family Physicians)
- Drug Rash (Unclassified Drug Eruption) in Children(Logical Images)
- Heat Rash or Prickly Heat (Miliaria Rubra)(Logical Images)
- New Itchy Skin Rashes in Children(Logical Images)
- Rashes: The Itchy Truth(Nemours Foundation)
- Viral Exanthem(Logical Images)