What is prickly heat and what are the symptoms

The formation of prickly heat is generally caused by excessive sweating of the skin in a hot and stuffy environment, but the sweating process is not smooth, which leads to the blockage of pores, thus causing the appearance of prickly heat. There are several types of prickly heat, and each has distinct symptoms.

Prickly heat is caused by excessive sweating in a hot and humid environment, which leads to poor evaporation of sweat, resulting in blockage and rupture of sweat ducts, and sweat infiltration into surrounding tissues. The main manifestations are small papules and blisters. It is more common in summer and is more common in children with poor sweat regulation function and long-term bedridden patients. Excessive scratching due to itching can lead to secondary infection, resulting in folliculitis, furuncle or abscess.

Clinical manifestations

According to the difference in sweat gland duct damage and sweat overflow site, it is clinically divided into the following types:

1. Crystalline Miliaria

As the name suggests, they are small blisters as crystal clear as crystal, also known as white prickly heat, which are caused by the overflow of sweat in the stratum corneum or the sweat ducts under the stratum corneum. It is common in patients with high fever, heavy sweating, long-term bed rest, and excessive weakness.

2. Red milia

It is relatively common and can be small papules or papulovesicles with a red halo around them, also known as red prickly heat. The overflow of sweat occurs slightly deeper in the epidermis. Conscious mild burning and itching sensation.

3. Pustular miliaria

Also known as purulent rash. It usually develops from red miliaria, with a needle-sized pustule on the top.

4. Deep Milia

Also known as deep prickly heat, it is caused by the overflow of sweat ducts in the upper dermis, especially at the dermis-epidermis junction. It is common in patients with severe and recurrent episodes of red milia. The skin lesions are densely packed small skin-colored blisters with clear contents that are not easily rubbed, and they increase in size when sweating and decrease in size when not sweating. When the rash is widespread, there may be compensatory increased sweating on the face, armpits, hands and feet, and the function of other sweat glands is basically lost. Sweating on the skin of the whole body is reduced or absent, which can cause tropical ahidrosis or heat exhaustion. The patient may experience systemic symptoms such as weakness, drowsiness, dizziness and headache.