What is a self-limiting disease

Self-limiting disease mainly refers to the disease that has certain limitations. After a certain period of onset, it will gradually stop and gradually restore the body's health. Generally, no special treatment is required and the body can fully recover relying on its own immunity. There are also many diseases in this regard. The most common ones are colds. In addition, chickenpox, pityriasis rosea, rotavirus, etc. are all self-limiting diseases.

Self-limiting diseases

1. Colds and flu According to scientists' observation, the process of colds and flu is roughly like this: at the beginning, due to the contraction of nasal mucosal blood vessels, the patient will feel very dry in the nose; then the blood vessels will expand, the nasal mucosa will swell, and the glandular secretions will increase, so the secretions (i.e. nasal mucus) will increase, which will be clear water-like at first, and then become more and more viscous. At this time, the nose will feel blocked and airtight, and there will be sneezing and runny nose;

Then there will be fever, headache, weakness in the limbs, and the nasal discharge will become increasingly sticky, with yellow purulent nasal discharge, which is mostly composed of white blood cells exuded from the blood, desquamated mucosal epithelium, and killed bacteria. After about 7 days, the symptoms of cold gradually disappear and the patient recovers. Therefore, taking medicine or getting injections during a cold or flu is of little help in shortening the course of the disease (i.e. the process and time from the onset to the end of the disease).

2. Chickenpox

Chickenpox is an acute infectious disease caused by primary infection with the varicella-zoster virus. The infection rate is high. It mainly occurs in infants and young children, and is characterized by fever and the appearance of large numbers of systemic red maculopapular rashes, blisters, and scabs.

It is more common in winter and spring. It is highly contagious and can be transmitted through contact or droplets. The incidence rate in susceptible children can reach over 95%, and it is more common in preschool children. The clinical characteristics are the appearance of maculopapular rashes, blisters and crusts in batches on the skin and mucous membranes, and the existence of rashes in different stages at the same time. The disease is a self-limiting disease, and the patient can obtain lifelong immunity after the disease. However, the infection may recur after many years and cause shingles.

3. Pityriasis rosea

When pityriasis rosea first occurs, it often appears as a single, larger pink plaque that is oval in shape with slight scaling on the edges, and is common on the chest, abdomen, or back. It is often misdiagnosed as a fungal infection.