What are the symptoms of roseola

Roseola is a skin problem, and when it occurs, some patients will show symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, and even fever and joint pain. Some may also develop blisters, pustules, or skin exudation. Therefore, when the body shows these symptoms, you should be alert to whether it is caused by roseola.

(1) Prodromal symptoms: About 5% of patients experience general discomfort before the onset of rash. Nausea, vomiting, loss of appetite, fever, joint pain, and swollen lymph nodes.

(2) Mother patch: occurs in 50% to 90% of cases. It begins as an isolated papule that rapidly increases in size over the next few days and can reach a diameter of 2 to 10 cm. It is a round or oval orange-red or light-colored patch that is slightly raised, has clear boundaries, and is covered with fine white scales. When the macules are irritated, they may develop eczematous papulovesicular manifestations. The mother's spot is common on the trunk or thighs, and sometimes on the neck or limbs, but is rare on the face and penis. There is no difference in the location of the mother's spot between men and women. The mother spot usually has no subjective symptoms and can be ignored by the patient.

(3) Secondary eruption: A few days or two months after the appearance of the mother rash, a number of smaller erythematous spots of the same shape as the mother rash appear on the trunk and proximal limbs. These spots are called daughter rash or secondary eruption. The lesions are horizontally elliptical, with the long axis consistent with the course of the skin grain. There are slight wrinkles in the center, clear boundaries, irregular edges, slightly jagged edges, and most of them are isolated and unfused. There is a small amount of white bran-like fine scales on the surface. After the secondary rash appears, the mother spot becomes lighter in color and is generally dry in nature, not inclined to moisture. The course of the secondary rash is between 2 and 10 weeks. If there is eczematous or drug-induced rash, the course of the disease will be slightly longer. There are usually varying degrees of itching.

(4) Oral lesions: There are often erythema, erosion, punctate hemorrhage and ulcers, as well as annular and plaque lesions.

(5) Good prognosis: If not treated, the disease will generally resolve spontaneously in about 4 to 8 weeks. When the inflammation subsides, it usually starts from the middle and gradually changes from yellow-red to yellow-brown and light brown and then disappears. The inflammation at the edge subsides slightly later, and scales form a ring around the center, which is very similar to tinea corporis. Temporary hypopigmentation or hyperpigmentation spots are left behind. There is generally no recurrence after recovery. In a few cases, the rash appears repeatedly in batches, and the course of the disease may take more than half a year to heal.