Is plum blossom rash contagious?

When it comes to infectious diseases, many people stay away from them and are terrified when talking about them. Currently, infectious diseases that are familiar to the public include major diseases such as syphilis and AIDS. Once infected, the treatment process is complicated and painful. Most people do not understand the causes and symptoms of infectious diseases, and sometimes mistake common diseases for infectious diseases. Among the diseases that are not well known to people is rash. So is rash contagious?

Pityriasis rosea, also known as pityriasis rosea, is a common skin disease. It is called pityriasis rosea because its rash is rose red, slightly raised above the skin, and some are contained within the skin. It varies in size, some are the size of small buttons, and some are the size of coins. It is oval in shape and covered with a thin layer of bran-like skin, called bran scales.

Is plum blossom rash contagious? Plum blossom rash is not contagious.

Pityriasis rosea is more common in spring and autumn, with a higher incidence in young and middle-aged people, slightly more in women than in men. The disease first occurs as a round, light pink spot that appears on the trunk, which is called the "mother spot." The maternal spot continues to expand and may even reach the size of an egg. Afterwards, smaller erythema will appear on the trunk, often spreading to the neck and proximal limbs, but generally not on the face and calves. The rash appears in batches, so rose, yellow-red, yellow-brown, and light brown rashes can be seen on the patient at the same time. Most of these rashes are oval in shape, with the long axis conforming to the skin texture.

Most patients have no symptoms, but some feel itchy, with varying degrees of itching. Some patients have systemic symptoms such as low-grade fever, headache, general malaise, sore throat, joint pain or swollen lymph nodes.

The course of pityriasis rosea is generally 4 to 6 weeks, but sometimes 2 to 3 months. This disease can resolve on its own without treatment and generally does not recur. The rash begins to fade from the center, changing from rose to yellow-red, then to yellow-brown, and then to light brown, until it finally disappears. The edges fade later, and the surrounding scales form a ring shape. The rash disappears without leaving any trace.

Is Pityriasis Rosea a sign of “poison in the blood”?

The cause of pityriasis rosea is unknown. There is a theory that pityriasis rosea is caused by a viral infection. Therefore, some people say that pityriasis rosea is caused by poison in the blood. This statement is unscientific. Blood flows throughout the body in blood vessels. If a virus invades the blood, "septicemia" will occur. The clinical manifestations are high fever, chills, coma, and may even affect important organs such as the brain, heart, and kidneys. These are clinical manifestations that pityriasis rosea does not have, so it cannot be said that pityriasis rosea is "toxic in the blood."

From the perspective of traditional Chinese medicine, pityriasis rosea, also known as "wind-heat sores", is caused by exogenous wind-heat evils, which stagnate the skin and muscles, block the pores, stagnate the Yang Qi, generate heat, turn the blood into dryness, damage the Yin fluid, and spread to the skin. Therefore, it cannot be said that pityriasis rosea is "poison in the blood."

The treatment of pityriasis rosea should target the cause of "external invasion of wind and heat in the blood turning into dryness", and should be based on the method of dispersing wind and heat, cooling blood and moistening dryness. The prescription is a modified version of Xiaofengsan.

During the medication period, you should be careful to avoid scratching the affected area, and avoid eating spicy, greasy food and fishy foods that may cause wind.