Skin disorders vary greatly in symptoms and severity. They can be temporary or permanent and may be painless or painful. Some have situational causes, while others may be genetic. Some skin conditions are minor, and others can be life-threatening.
While most skin disorders are minor, others indicate a more serious underlying issue. Contact your doctor if you think you might have one of these common skin problems.
Types of Skin Disorders :
- Temporary Skin Disorders
- Permanent Skin Disorders
According to dermatology, there are two kinds of skin disorders – temporary and permanent. While the former can be treated through various options, the latter can recur on and off and may need medication for a lifetime.
It is important that you identify the symptoms of each disorder and opt for suitable treatments accordingly. This is why we have decided to give you a detailed explanation of common skin disorders in this blog.
Temporary Skin Disorders:
There are some skin conditions that can last a lifetime. Most have a pattern of flaring up due to triggers and then subsiding before disappearing. Others, like vitiligo, are permanent and can only be managed, not completely treated.
Permanent Skin Disorders :
Some skin conditions resolve with time or with the right course of treatment.
There are many different types of skin disorders. Here is a list of 10 most common skin disorder.
Temporary Skin Disorder
1. Acne
Acne is the most common and temporary skincare disorder in India. It is mostly caused due to excess oil and sebum production and blocked pores in the affected area.
Acne is most likely to occur on the face, neck, shoulder, chest and upper back. They may even cause breakouts on the skin composed of blackheads, whiteheads, pimples, or deep painful cysts and modules. There are chances that they may leave scars or darken the skin if left untreated.
Treatment:
- In most cases, it can be treated with a topical cream, lotions and regular use of toner.
- Whereas on the other hand, medication may be required.
- Acnes which are dark red in colour often require a change in diet with reduced consumption of meat.
2. Warts
Warts are typically small, rough, grainy hard skin growth that is similar in colour to the rest of the skin and occur most often on your fingers or hands.
Usually, warts also feature a pattern of tiny black dots, which are small, clotted blood vessels.
Apart from the above information they do not result in other symptoms, except when they occur on the bottom of the feet, where they may be painful.
When the growth is painful or there is a change in appearance or colour of the wart then one should understand the alarming call to visit the dermatologist.
Treatment:
- In most cases warts disappear without treatment, although it may take a couple of months or a year as the case may be, leaving behind new ones nearby.
- While on the other hand in more complex skin disorders you need to consult a dermatologist who may suggest one of the following approaches, based on the location of your
- Stronger peeling medicine (salicylic acid)
- Freezing (cryotherapy)
- Minor surgery
- Laser treatment
3. Hives
Hives also known as urticaria, are itchy raised welts that occur on the skin. Usually, they are red, pink or flesh-coloured and mildly painful to the touch.
Typically hives are small, round and ring-shaped. In most cases, they are caused by an allergic reaction, which can be anything food, medication, or reaction to an irritant in the environment. People who are known to have allergies are more likely to get hives.
Hives are Temporary skin disorders that may be alleviated with allergy medication that go away on their own. However, in complex condition, hives accompanied by a severe allergic reaction requires dermatologist guidance
Treatment:
- The first step in the treatment procedure is to identify whether the person is actually suffering from hives or not.
- A person suffering from mild Hives may not require long-prescripted treatment.For this, you need to consult a skin specialist. In these circumstances, your dermatologist might suggest you seek temporary relief by taking antihistamines, such as diphenhydramine or cetirizine.
- In case of chronic hives, the dermatologist may perform blood tests or skin tests to determine what may have caused your hives — especially if they were the result of an allergic reaction.
4. Sunburn
Sunburns occur when there is too much exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light from the sun or sunlamps. Sometimes skin gets red, painful, and hot to the touch and may also peel away.
It’s quite difficult to identify how much time is safe to be in the sun even by using sunscreen protection. As far as sunscreen is concerned dermatologists advise reapplying it every 2 hours.
It is the best way of preventing sunburn year-round by just simply wearing sunscreen or using other skin protection habits. It is especially important when you’re outdoors, even on cool or cloudy days. There’s no doubt – it’s easier to prevent a sunburn than to treat one.
Treatment:
- The first and foremost step starts with self-care i.e. seeking shades, using sunscreen, staying away from sunlight as much as possible and cooling the skin down.
- Keeping your body hydrated is also very important so drink plenty of fluids and moisturize the skin with a light, oil-free moisturizer or aloe vera while the skin is still damp.
- Consult a dermatologist if you have fever, rashes or chronic blistering all over the body. One should not scratch or pop any blisters – which could eventually turn into infections.
5. Contact Dermatitis
Contact Dermatitis occurs when one comes in contact with something that evolves into a skin reaction. It is basically a type of eczema that may come from plants, jewellery and irritants like bleach or soaps.
Typically Contact Dermatitis occurs in situations where the skin becomes dry and irritated.
Later the colour of skin can also change to red, dark brown, purple or grey.
This reaction usually increase within few hours or days of exposer to an irritant or allergen.
Treatment:
- First step is to identify and avoid the substance completely which cause irritant or allergy. by doing so it will automatically improve or clear up.
- Antihistamines, oral or topical steroids, and colloidal oatmeal baths are often helpful to control symptoms.
- In complex situations one should consult a dermatologist who can later suspect the cause of contact dermatitis and may even advise patch testing. Which is basically applying allergic substances to your skin and analysing the reaction treatment.
6. Blister
Blisters are basically small pockets of fluid that mostly appears on the upper surface of the skin after it is damaged. A blister can occur anywhere in the entire body but it is more likely to develop on the hands and feet.
In most cases, blisters are filled with clear fluid, but at times when they are inflamed or infected, they may be filled with blood or pus.
One can prevent chafing that eventually leads to blister, Dermatologist mostly recommends protecting the feet, wearing the right clothing, and applying powder or petroleum jelly to the problem areas.
Treatment:
- In the first place if you get a blister, be patient and try to leave it alone. In most cases, it heals on its own in a couple of weeks. Don’t repeat the process that led to the blister until it clears up.
If you are suffering from chronic Blister dermatologist suggest to:-
- Cover the blister -covering the infected area with a bandage.
- Use padding- to protect the blister in pressure areas, such as the bottom of the feet, one needs to use padding.
- Avoid popping – it is a big no from dermatologists to pop or drain the blister which can eventually lead to an increase in the infection.
Permanent Skin Disorder
7. Moles
Moles are the most common skin disorder. They are usually small, dark brown spots and are mostly caused by clusters of pigment-forming cells.
Most people have 10 to 40 moles that are likely to appear during childhood and adolescence and may eventually clear up or fade over time. However, some may be present when the baby is born.
At times moles are rough, flat, raised and even have hair growing out of them. They have the tendency to change their appearance, amount and may even drop off.
People having dark complexion tends to have fewer moles as compared to people with fair complexion.
Treatment:
- Normally majority of moles are harmless and do not require any treatment.
- One can opt for surgical removal for beauty purposes.
- It is bothersome, such as if the patient finds shaving difficult, or it gets snagged in clothing.
A mole may be removed in the following ways :
- Shave excision
- Excisional surgery (excision biopsy)
8.Rosacea
Rosacea is one of the most common skin disorders in women over 30, but this does not state that it is only found in women, men can be affected too.
This is mostly caused by problems related to the immune system, veins and even environmental issues.
Rosacea causes chronic swelling of the face, with redness, prominent blood vessels, and pimples. It may also produce small, pus-filled bumps.
These signs and symptoms may flare up for a couple of weeks to months and then go away for a while.
Treatment:
- Depending upon the symptoms , dermatologists may prescribe Antibiotics, such as metronidazole cream or oral doxycycline .
- For more severe cases, your dermatologist might suggest the acne drug isotretinoin.
9. Atopic dermatitis (Eczema)
Atopic dermatitis (eczema) is the most common form of eczema, which causes the skin to become itchy, dry and cracked.
Dry, scaly and itchy skin is the norm, and constant scratching may lead to a thickened area.
It usually appears on the face (especially in infants), hands, feet or in the creases and folds of the skin.
Atopic dermatitis long-term (chronic) condition, although it can improve significantly, or even clear completely, in some children as they get older.
Treatment:
Treatments for atopic dermatitis can help to ease the symptoms. There’s no cure, but many children find their symptoms naturally improve as they get older.
The main treatments for atopic eczema are:
- emollients (moisturisers) – used every day to stop the skin from becoming dry
- topical corticosteroids – creams and ointments used to reduce swelling and redness during flare-ups
10. Vitiligo
Vitiligo is a long-term disease that causes loss of skin colour in patches. The discoloured areas usually get bigger with time.
It can also affect the hair and the inside of the mouth.
Normally, the colour of hair and skin is determined by melanin. Vitiligo occurs when cells that produce melanin die or stop functioning.
It is usually caused by the lack of melanin, which is mostly found as a pigment in the skin. The pale areas of the skin are more vulnerable to sunburn, so it’s important to take extra care when in the sun and use sunscreen with a high sun protection factor (SPF).
The condition is not life-threatening or contagious. It can be stressful or make you feel bad about yourself.
Treatment:
- Treatment for vitiligo is based on changing the appearance of the skin by restoring its colour.
- Medications and light-based therapies are available to help restore skin color or even out skin tone, though results vary and are unpredictable. And some treatments have serious side effects.
