Symptoms of Pityriasis Rosea (AKA Christmas Tree Rash)?
The First Time I Saw Pityriasis Rosea
I had never heard of Pityriasis Rosea when my youngest son came to me complaining of a spot on his neck. I thought it was eczema but it didn't look like it after 24 hours and two days later he was covered in a spotted rash that looked like the bastard children of contact dermatitis, chicken pox and zits. The rash spread over the next three days and took on a Christmas tree shape on his back. I called the Doctor and made an appointment hoping he wouldn't erupt in tinsel, lights and ornaments.
Symptoms of Pityriasis Rosea?
The Doctor took about 30 seconds to identify the rash covering my son. Searching on Google gave me a better idea of what symptoms accompany this. They are:
- A single pink patch that is scaly with a raised border. It's shaped in an oval or round shape and about 1 to 4 inches around. This is called the Herald patch.
- The Herald Patch is followed by a rash of oval patches on the trunk, chest, arms, back and legs. This will sometimes spread to the neck and hairline. This part of the rash will appear within a few days or up to 2 weeks from the time the Herald Patch appears.
- The patches of the rash that appear on the back show up in a vertical pattern and follow the ribs and spine. If you stand back and look at it's shape, it looks like a Christmas tree. That doesn't mean the each little spot looks like a Christmas tree. It just means it looks like someone drew a Christmas tree shape using the Pityriasis Rosea rash.
- According to Webmd.com, about 25% of people who get Pityriasis Rosea will have mild to severe itching while everyone else, lucky people, will have no itching at all. Luckily my son only had mild itching that cleared up with Benadryl.
- Other symptoms that may appear before (or after, as is the case for my son) are sore throat, nausea and a headache.
How long does Pityriasis Rosea Last?
Without any medicine the rash will last anywhere from 3 to 6 weeks. I did read a few websites that stated up to 12 weeks but, the majority of websites agree that 3 to 6 weeks is about average.
There was a study done that shows that Erythromycin helps clear up the rash quicker. My son's Doctor said it should go away in 3 to 7 days on the medicine. He just started his round of medicine yesterday (2 Jan 2009). I'll update when the rash is gone to let you know how long it lastest. This treatment will work for 73.33% of patients.
Interesting Fact about Pityriasis Rosea
An interesting fact I found is that you'll most likely only get Pityriasis Rosea once. I'm not holding my breath since my son has had Chicken Pox four times now. But we can hope.
***I am not a Doctor. I don't play one on TV, either. Please don't mistake my article as medical advice. If you think you or someone you know has Pityriasis Rosea, go get it checked out! Why? Because it may not be Pityriasis Rosea. For example: The Pityriasis Rosea rash mimics the secondary Syphilis rash. Go get it checked out!***
Sources:
US National Library of Medicine
Webmd Skin Problems and Treatment Center
Google Health
Published by Dotchi Latham
Latham has been writing since the age of 16 when she started writing poetry and short stories. She has written articles around the web and is honing her writing skills. View profile
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6 Comments
Post a CommentLOL I know what you mean by the "come look at me specimen". They did that to my son too. His rash is almost gone now. It got really flaky and then started disappearing.
My 11 year old son was diagnosed yesterday. It does look pretty funky. He complains of mild itching and did I mention -it looks funky. Anywhoo-other than being the "come look at me" speciman for the med-school students in the pediatrician's office he's doing pretty good.
So far, the headaches from the medicine is far worse than the rash. His dad and I got together and agreed since the meds aren't a MUST, then he can quit taking them.
I hope this clears up for him soon! I had this type of rash a few months back, it was not fun.
Me too!
wow! Hope it clears up soon!