Skin diseases are characterized by their multiplicity - there are more than 300 of them, and they all have their own symptoms, diagnosis and treatment. Knowing everything about them is the prerogative of specialists, and it is enough for an ordinary person to have a general understanding of the most common pathologies in everyday life in order to be able to distinguish them.
Skin functions
Skin is the largest organ in terms of size, which as a whole has an area of two square meters. Its function is primarily barrier and protective. Being permeable, the skin takes part in the regulation of water balance, body temperature, is responsible for respiration, the release of not only sweat, but also toxins.
The epidermis is quite autonomous and even somewhat independent, for example, in its proliferation and differentiation of keratinocytes.
Skin Anatomy
Skin according to a simplified scheme has 3 layers:
- Its outer layer (epidermis) has direct contact with the environment. Its uppermost cover is horny, represents keratinized cells and is the mostfat.
- Dermis, or the actual skin - it contains elastic fibers, roots of hair and nails, as well as sweat and sebaceous glands.
- The lowest, third, layer is called subcutaneous fat (hypoderm).
The full cycle of skin renewal is 2 months. Despite such a fairly strong structure, it is prone to many diseases. The reasons for the development of skin pathologies are different. All factors affecting her he alth are combined into 2 large groups: internal (endogenous) and external (exogenous).
External causes
External causes include:
- Physical: thermal, which can lead to burns, frostbite; mechanical damage is friction, scratches, cracks, cuts; radiation - the action of wave energy in the form of UV, radiation, x-rays, can cause severe skin consequences up to the necrosis of the epidermis.
- Chemical damage is provoked by professional substances (acids, alkalis, etc.) or household detergents that irritate and even burn the skin.
- Infectious agents - bacteria, viruses, fungi, protozoa.
- Biological causes are the action of parasites, animal bites, etc. The introduction of harmful insects always causes skin diseases in humans.
- Environmental - in the modern world, against the background of unfavorable ecology, classical and atypical dermatosis occurs, often associated with allergies.
Internal Causes
Internal causes include:
- Endocrine failuresglands - the pituitary gland, genital, as well as diabetes mellitus. They each cause their own pathology: seborrhea and acne, Addison's disease, trophic ulcers.
- Constant stress creates conditions for the development of neurodermatosis, eczema.
- Hormonal fluctuations. During gestation, there may be dermatosis of pregnant women, during menopause - keratosis of the palms and soles, etc.
- Diseases of the gastrointestinal tract and hepatobiliary system manifest themselves as pigmentation of the skin of the face and neck.
- Hypovitaminosis. Vitamin C deficiency causes bleeding in the skin (hemorrhages). Vitamin A deficiency increases its dryness, resulting in keratosis or frinoderm. Reduced content of vitamin B2 can lead to seborrheic dermatitis. Lack of vitamin PP provokes the occurrence of pellagra or dermatitis.
- Hematological (hematopoietic) diseases are problems with lymphocytes that cause systemic lesions and severe skin ailments: lupus erythematosus, scleroderma.
- If a person has varicose veins, then trophic ulcers, eczema appear on the legs.
- HIV infection. With her, there are especially many skin pathologies: lichen, mycoses, seborrhea, Kaposi's sarcoma, dermatoses and others. And all of them have the hardest form.
- Genetics. Psoriasis and atopic dermatitis, congenital skin diseases that have arisen in the fetus, can be inherited.
- Individual sensitivity and intolerance to the effects of various substances in contact with them. We are talking about allergic reactions - Quincke's edema or severe toxidermia.
It is often impossible to installthe exact cause of the disease, because more often they can be combined. So, staphyloderma, syphilis, HIV develop from staphylococcus, spirochete and retrovirus, respectively, but microtraumas on the skin are usually present and, in addition, immunity is reduced.
General information
An important role in the occurrence of dermapathologies is played by a decrease in immunity and the type of pathogen. Main signs: skin microtraumas, rash, redness, peeling, pain, burning and itching, ulcers, sleep disturbances due to the severity of manifestations.
Skin diseases usually have 3 stages of their development:
- Acute - appears immediately after contact with an irritant or pathogen. With it, characteristic symptoms make themselves felt.
- Subacute - manifestations are not yet chronic, but also mild, as in the acute stage.
- Chronic - often the form is hidden, very long, the symptoms are not pronounced, sluggish, with periodic exacerbations.
Classification of pathologies
Skin diseases are classified broadly due to the large number of pathologies. For example, even according to ICD-10, there are already several vesicular diseases alone: these are psoriasis, parapsoriasis, lichen, pemphigus, lichen planus and others. There is no particular need to know them and list them all here - this is the work of specialists. Only the most common skin diseases will be grouped in a simplified form. The names of ailments often depend on the causative agent or the most pronounced characteristic symptom.
Frequent viewsskin pathologies
The most common skin diseases are:
- Fungal infections that affect the skin, nails and scalp. Transmitted through contact with the patient, household items (shoes, dishes).
- Purulent inflammation - more often caused by strepto- or staphylococci. Reduced immunity can contribute to this with hypothermia, stress (photos and descriptions of skin diseases with similar lesions help to see the clinical picture and their etiology). These ailments include pyoderma, streptoderma, staphyloderma, abscesses, phlegmon, boils and carbuncles. Cocci can also cause pustular diseases of a smaller rank, forming a large number of foci, pustules.
- Infection with lice, ticks, flea and bedbug bites. In the photo, skin diseases of this type look like eczema. This is scabies, demodicoses, they are painfully tolerated and require urgent measures, causing complications.
- Lichens are classified as fungal diseases. Their types are quite different: multi-colored, pink, flat, ringworm, herpes zoster. They differ both clinically and in treatment.
- Disorders of the skin glands usually manifest themselves in seborrhea, acne, folliculitis. More often associated with hormonal changes and occur more at puberty.
- Viral skin diseases are resistant to treatment, always chronic, difficult to detect. May lead to malignancy. Among them, papillomas, warts, herpes, molluscum contagiosum are most common.
- Allergic skindiseases, photos of which usually illustrate their diversity, are exacerbated only by contact with an allergen. Treatable.
- Skin cancer. The exact cause is not established in all pathologies. A typical representative of this group is melanoma, skin cancer, basilioma.
It should be said that skin diseases most often do not have signs of a general lesion of the body. Their local manifestations are treated quite successfully.
Visual manifestations
Before giving a description of skin diseases with a photo, it is necessary to briefly note the visual manifestations of such pathologies.
- Crusts - formed at the site of ulcers, blisters, they are dense to the touch, talking about recovery. Most often brown in color.
- Scales - exfoliating particles of skin.
- Spots (macules) - more often red, brownish or discolored. Do not rise above the skin. Symptom of toxidermia, dermatitis, syphilis, vitiligo. Pigmented spots include freckles, moles, and sunburn.
- Papules - an area that rises above the level of the skin.
- Plaques are papules merged together.
- Vesicles - vesicles with bloody or serous contents, their size can reach 0.5 cm. This is a characteristic element in allergic dermatitis, eczema, herpes, burns, chickenpox, shingles.
- Abscess or pustule - a vesicle with purulent contents. Characteristic for furunculosis, impetigo, acne, folliculitis, pyoderma.
- Blister - resembles a bubble, raised above the skin,has a rough surface. Appears with allergic reactions (urticaria), insect bites, nettle burns. Disappears without treatment after a short period of time.
- Erythema - a spot raised above the level of the skin, bright red. Its edge is sharply expressed. Erythema is characteristic of food and drug allergies.
- A nodule is a dense formation without a cavity, it differs from the general background of the skin in color. It can be from 1 mm to 3 cm. Typical for warts, psoriasis, papillomas.
Most common illnesses
It would be good for every person to get information about the ailments associated with the epidermis, and to have an idea of how they look (as a rule, they are always indicated under the photo with skin diseases and names, and some characteristics are also given). Below is a brief description of the most common diseases:
- Acne is the result of inflammation of the sebaceous glands. May occur on the face, shoulders, chest and back, in 85% of cases in adolescents. This is the most common skin lesion.
- Atopic dermatitis - its main symptom is itching. More characteristic also for children, with dry, prone to irritation of the epidermis. Common sites of injury are the elbows and the back of the knees. Can be inherited.
- Acne (pimples) are also very common. They pass easily, without scars and scars, if they are not squeezed out. When infected, they form comedones and purulent ulcers. The reason for the appearance is blockage of the sebaceous glands against the background of a dishormonal state,malnutrition, low-quality cosmetics.
- Eczema is the consequences of allergies, the signs of which appear even in childhood. With this disease, the skin becomes inflamed, there are bubbles, peeling, erosion on it.
- Ringworm. It is highly contagious, transmitted by contact. It is manifested by redness in spots in the central part, it has a brown color along the edges. With the progression of the process, the spots coarsen and become covered with hard crusts. May appear on the hairy parts of the body. At the same time, bald patches appear in the place of spots.
- Herpes - can appear everywhere, up to the genitals. Most often there is a simple one - in the form of bubbles and rashes on the lips. The lesions later crust over. Occurs with stress, sunburn, trauma.
- Melanoma - manifests itself in the form of black-brown or other asymmetrical spots up to 6 cm in diameter. Treatment is surgical only (malignant and rapidly growing).
- Scabies. A skin disease most commonly seen on the hands is caused by the scabies mite. It can be in the armpit, on the chest, genitals. Treated successfully. Causes excruciating itching, the mite forms scabies in the skin.
- Pyoderma - first manifested by purulent rashes, they hurt and itch. The temperature may rise. It is prone to a protracted course, the nature is infectious. Such a skin disease in children is also not uncommon. The course is characterized by the depth of infection penetration. Treatment depends on the severity of the disease.
- Psoriasis is a chronic skin disease in adults, the etiology of which is still not clear. Naturenon-infectious. It appears as red spots, peeling with silvery-white scales. It is not always treated successfully, often gives exacerbations.
- Erysipelas is a bacterial infection. The focus looks like a dense redness with clear boundaries. Appears often on the legs, face. Gives general symptoms in the form of fever, feeling unwell.
- Urticaria - a rash in the form of a cluster of blisters, with severe itching, of an allergic nature. Reminds me of a nettle burn. Up to 40% of the population experience it at least once in their lives. May become chronic and last up to 6-7 weeks.
- Pityriasis versicolor - caused by a fungus, refers to keratomycosis. Manifested with a decrease in immunity. It has been inactive for a long time before. Multiple pink spots appear on any part of the body, gradually darken to brown and then disappear. Itching and peeling can often be noted (photos of skin diseases in adults encourage you to think about the timely treatment of ailments).
- Trichophytosis is a fungus that affects the deep layers of the skin and causes inflammation. The disease is contagious, can be superficial, suppurative and infiltrative. First, pink or red spots appear, which then crust over. There may be complications with suppuration.
- Microsporia - resembles trichophytosis, but the spots are smaller in size. Often appears on the scalp. Children are more likely to become infected, from sick animals.
- Senile keratosis is a problem for the elderly. It develops from hyperinsolation. Seals appear on the skin - nodes and plaques, often brown. Countsbenign formation, but there is a tendency to rebirth.
- Hemangioma is a benign tumor that occurs in a third of young children. It can appear not only on the face, but also on any part of the body, on the head. The reason is the pathological development of blood vessels. Appears as a dark red mass, with no general symptoms.
- Papillomas - they look like growths, they do not differ in color from the general skin. Reminds me of warts. Benign formations that occur when immunity is reduced against the background of stress, gastrointestinal diseases, chronic infections.
- Molluscum contagiosum is a common infection in children. transmitted through contacts. They look like bubbles filled with light contents, can occur anywhere, more often on the legs and torso.
- Diaper rash is a lack of hygiene in young children in 70% of cases, in which parents are to blame. Have a bright red color, accompanied by itching and pain.
Treatment of skin pathologies
Treatment of skin diseases always takes a long time and is carried out in several stages. First, it is necessary to eliminate the causative factor, stop inflammation or atrophy, achieve complete regeneration of the affected skin, and then strengthen the immune system.
Antibacterial therapy is often used to eliminate an infectious cause:
- for bacteria it is antibiotics (pills and antibacterial ointment for skin diseases);
- for fungi - antimycotics;
- for viruses - antiviral drugs, antiparasitic.
Allergies always require antihistamines (antihistamines). Keratolytics are indicated for keratosis and acne.
To reduce inflammation, local treatment is prescribed - creams, ointments, special cleansers, talkers, gels and others. To improve blood flow and metabolism, regeneration processes, herbs, physiotherapy and homeopathy are used simultaneously with anti-inflammatory drugs.
Effective UV blood, UHF, cryotherapy, body wraps and masks. For any skin lesions, enterosorbents help to remove toxins from the body (Polifepan, Laktofiltrum, Polysorb, Enterosgel, etc.). They are taken in whole courses lasting 2-3 weeks.
