SKIN DISORDERS

Skin Disorders that can be treated by Thai and Chinese Traditional Medicinal Treatment

1.Chickenpox or Varicella

Chickenpox is an infection that causes a skin rash. The disease is caused by a germ called varicella-zoster virus. (Chickenpox itself is also called varicella-zoster.) Most people will get the virus when theyre young if they havent had a chickenpox vaccine. Symtoms are :

• Fever.
• Feeling tired.
• Headache.
  
• A stomachache that lasts for one or two days.
• A skin rash that is very itchy and looks like many small blisters.
• Bumps filled with a liquid that looks like milky water.
• Scabs after the blisters break.
• Skin that looks blotchy.
• Spots that fade away.    

2.Herpes zoster or Shingles

Shingles is a viral infection that causes a painful rash. Shingles can occur anywhere on your body. It typically looks like a single stripe of blisters that wraps around the left side or the right side of your torso.Symptoms are :

- Pain, burning or tingling
- Sensitivity to touch
- A red rash that begins a few days after the pain
- Fluid-filled blisters that break open and crust over
- Itching

3.Herpes simplex

Herpes simplex is a virus. There are two types of herpes. HSV-1 tends to affect your mouth and face. HSV-2 tends to affect your genital area. Once a person contracts herpes, it's a lifelong condition. Symptoms usually include sores that last for up to 10 days. Some people experience no herpes symptoms. Others choose antiviral treatment to reduce outbreaks.Herpes spreads through close contact with a person who has the infection. The virus can be found in skin and saliva. If you have herpes simplex, you are most likely to pass the virus to another person when you have sores. But you can infect someone else even if you have no symptoms. Healthcare providers call this asymptomatic viral shedding.

People may get HSV-1 through
 - Kissing.
- Touching a persons skin near the mouth.
- Sharing food utensils, lip balm or razors.
- If you receive oral sex from someone who has a cold sore, it may spread a herpes infection to your genitals.

People may get HSV-2 through
- Intercourse, including anal, vaginal-penile and vaginal-vaginal.
- Oral sex (giving or receiving) with someone whos infected.
- Skin-to-skin contact without ejaculation.
- Touching open sores, including while breastfeeding.
- Childbirth by a mother or gestational parent who has an active infection.

4.Atopic dermatitis

Atopic dermatitis (eczema) is a condition that causes dry, itchy and inflamed skin. It's common in young children but can occur at any age. Atopic dermatitis is long lasting (chronic) and tends to flare sometimes. It can be irritating but it's not contagious.People with atopic dermatitis are at risk of developing food allergies, hay fever and asthma. Moisturizing regularly and following other skin care habits can relieve itching and prevent new outbreaks (flares). Treatment may also include medicated ointments or creams. Symptoms are

- Dry, cracked skin
- Itchiness (pruritus)
- Rash on swollen skin that varies in color depending on your skin color
- Small, raised bumps, on brown or Black skin
- Oozing and crusting
- Thickened skin
- Darkening of the skin around the eyes
- Raw, sensitive skin from scratching

5.Seborrtheic dermatitis

Seborrheic (seb-o-REE-ik) dermatitis is a common skin condition that mainly affects your scalp. It causes scaly patches, inflamed skin and stubborn dandruff. It usually affects oily areas of the body, such as the face, sides of the nose, eyebrows, ears, eyelids and chest. This condition can be irritating but it's not contagious, and it doesn't cause permanent hair loss. Seborrheic dermatitis may go away without treatment. Or you may need to use medicated shampoo or other products long term to clear up symptoms and prevent flare-ups. Seborrheic dermatitis is also called dandruff, seborrheic eczema and seborrheic psoriasis. When it occurs in infants, it's called cradle cap. Symptoms are :

- Flaking skin (dandruff) on your scalp, hair, eyebrows, beard or mustache
- Patches of greasy skin covered with flaky white or yellow scales or crust on the scalp, face, sides of the nose, eyebrows, ears, eyelids, chest, armpits, groin area or under the breasts
- Rash that may look darker or lighter in people with brown or Black skin and redder in those with white skin
- Ring-shaped (annular) rash, for a type called petaloid seborrheic dermatitis
- Itchiness (pruritus)

6.Ring worm or tinea

Ringworm can affect skin on almost any part of the body as well as fingernails and toenails. The symptoms of ringworm often depend on which part of the body is infected, but they generally include:

- Itchy skin
- Ring-shaped rash
- Red, scaly, cracked skin
- Hair loss

7.Psoriasis Vulgaris

Psoriasis is a skin disease that causes a rash with itchy, scaly patches, most commonly on the knees, elbows, trunk and scalp. Psoriasis is a common, long-term (chronic) disease with no cure. It can be painful, interfere with sleep and make it hard to concentrate. The condition tends to go through cycles, flaring for a few weeks or months, then subsiding for a while. Common triggers in people with a genetic predisposition to psoriasis include infections, cuts or burns, and certain medications.

There are several types of psoriasis, each of which varies in its signs and symptoms:

Plaque psoriasis. The most common type of psoriasis, plaque psoriasis causes dry, itchy, raised skin patches (plaques) covered with scales. There may be few or many. They usually appear on the elbows, knees, lower back and scalp. The patches vary in color, depending on skin color. The affected skin might heal with temporary changes in color (post inflammatory hyperpigmentation), particularly on brown or Black skin.

Nail psoriasis. Psoriasis can affect fingernails and toenails, causing pitting, abnormal nail growth and discoloration. Psoriatic nails might loosen and separate from the nail bed (onycholysis). Severe disease may cause the nail to crumble.

Guttate psoriasis. Guttate psoriasis primarily affects young adults and children. It's usually triggered by a bacterial infection such as strep throat. It's marked by small, drop-shaped, scaling spots on the trunk, arms or legs.

Inverse psoriasis. Inverse psoriasis mainly affects the skin folds of the groin, buttocks and breasts. It causes smooth patches of inflamed skin that worsen with friction and sweating. Fungal infections may trigger this type of psoriasis.

Pustular psoriasis. Pustular psoriasis, a rare type, causes clearly defined pus-filled blisters. It can occur in widespread patches or on small areas of the palms or soles.

Erythrodermic psoriasis. The least common type of psoriasis, erythrodermic psoriasis can cover the entire body with a peeling rash that can itch or burn intensely. It can be short-lived (acute) or long-term (chronic).

8.Necrotizing fasciitis

Necrotising fasciitis, also known as the "flesh-eating disease", is a rare and life-threatening infection that can happen if a wound gets infected.

Symptoms of necrotising fasciitis can develop quickly within hours or over a few days.

At first you may have:

intense pain or loss of feeling near to a cut or wound the pain may seem much worse than you would usually expect from a cut or wound
swelling of the skin around the affected area
flu-like symptoms, such as a high temperature, headache and tiredness

Later symptoms can include:

being sick (vomiting) and diarrhoea
confusion
black, purple or grey blotches and blisters on the skin (these may be less obvious on black or brown skin)

For more informations, please contact Peter on 0811944826 or email to pgbarton@hotmail.co.uk