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General health

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Original poster

i have some angry red welts on my arms which the doc says is fungla infection, any advice greatly appreciated

22 replies

lizandlulu · 09/03/2009 12:25

cause they look awful. they have spread and have gone form a small part in my arm to a fairly large area and now on both arms too. it is really itchy and sometimes flaky.

i have had it for 3 months now and its nto getting any better despite trying gp reccomended hydracortisone cream and now trying diflucan cream. both dont seem to have any effect on it.

is there anything herbal or i can take oraly which might help? its getting warmer and i dont want it on my arms for summer it looks so awful.

any help greatly appreciated

OP posts:

OhYouBadBadKitten · 09/03/2009 12:52

What made the gp say it was fungal? (vaguely wondering if it might be psoriasis)
If it def is, then has the gp considered a systemic antifungal like lamisil?

Original poster

lizandlulu · 09/03/2009 13:51

sorry the cream i am using is daktarin, not diflucan

he said fungal because it has a whiter middle part, i dont know much about it apart form that. i have seen 2 different gp's and both said fungal, but the cream doesnt seem to touch it, and it is spreading too, so i am not cinvinced.

OP posts:

IwishIwereonthebeach · 09/03/2009 14:24

Get them to shine a UV light on them. If they glow, its fungal. How much cream are you putting on them? Whent he tube says a thin layer, its actually much thicker than you'd think. Slather it on regularly! If after a week of intensive regime, you see no improvement (and it defintely is fungal) ask to be referred to a dermatologist.

ditzzy · 09/03/2009 14:31

Have you been given any advice on anything to take orally? I've had all sorts of fungal skin infections.... if it gets really red and flaky I take Clarityn antihistamine tablets while using mosturiser (current favourite is Aveeno). That usually stops it itching, so stops me spreading it too badly, and gives my body time to heal by itself.

The only time that combination didn't work I took a Canestan oral tablet (the anti-thrush one) - there's some publicity now that it kills fungal skin infections too... but if you've already seeing your doctor about your skin, you should ask him what oral antifungals he can give you, if its spreading then you can claim that you don't feel confident in being able to cover it all with a cream, tricky bits to reach, not sure if you're putting the right amount on....

girlandboy · 09/03/2009 14:38

I had Pityriasis Rosea which looks like ringworm (a fungal infection). I've had it a few times, but not for a few years now. It was only on my arms and the odd patch on my legs.

The gp scraped a bit off for testing and it all came back as negative, so that's why he said it was pityriasis. He did admit to being a bit baffled though, and we agreed that if it didn't bother me too much then to leave well alone!

this describes it quite well

this shows a picture. I wasn't covered in it, but the arrowed picture shows a typical "ring"

drlove8 · 09/03/2009 15:07

i think it sounds like PITYRIASIS VARICOLOR. use caniesten cream 1% on it for 3weeks, ( the rash will fade after a few days but its imortant to keep using or it'll come back).you can use the shampoo thats used for severe dandruff (the one in dark bottle, not head & shoulders) as a shower gel, and that will help too.

Original poster

lizandlulu · 09/03/2009 15:10

girlandboy that does sound and look about right!
my doc said to try this cream for 4 weeks, if that doesnt help then he would try some kind of tablets, i forget which kind he said, but 4 weeks is a long time with horrible looking arms!

OP posts:

drlove8 · 09/03/2009 15:11

if its scaley , then its psoriasis, and you need to go back to gp. sunlight helps clear it .( its not infection, its caused by the skin renewing itself too fast, so it cant be caught or passed on).

messageinabottle · 09/03/2009 15:12

I have had this before.

I would definately look at your diet as well as the creams you have mentioned above. Try to cut down or even eliminate food that encourages fungal growth - sugar/mushrooms/soy sauce/alcohol/yeast (so bread and marmite) etc.

Also, I would recommend a priobotic supplement from Holland & Barrett (Probiotic Plus). Costs about £20 so v pricey but again as soon as I started using these for a bit, and watched my diet, the patches disappeared (and have not reappeared since). A probiotic drink/yoghurt etc would not work as well as the tabs and they always contain sugar which will encourage the fungal growth

Good luck

messageinabottle · 09/03/2009 15:15

I think tea tree oil is good for fungal infections too, so for a time perhaps you could switch to tea tree oil shower gel?

Original poster

lizandlulu · 09/03/2009 15:16

its not scaley, just abit flakey around the edges, and not all the time, just if i have been itching it alot, sometimes it drives me mad!

i might try the pro biotic supplement, i do love sugar, but dont eat mushrooms or much bread and hardley drink.

i have been putting the cream on thinly, butl ast nigth i did slather it on cause it was really itching after wearing a jumper all day, and it stung for quite a while afterwards.

OP posts:

messageinabottle · 09/03/2009 15:25

yup sounds exactly like what I had.
I think it's definately worth you giving the probiotic tabs a try.
Cleared mine up anyway (and I still succumb to sugar now and then )

Original poster

lizandlulu · 09/03/2009 17:14

thank you, i will def get somw of the tablets. give them a try.

OP posts:

Original poster

lizandlulu · 09/03/2009 19:18

right, i am definately not happy, i have now noticed a small area on my shoulder and one on my fore arm

was going to wait till i am off work on wednesday to get the tablets but think i will have to send my mother tomorrow

OP posts:

messageinabottle · 09/03/2009 22:20

I completely understand why you are sad - it got me down too. I had it for YEARS literally YEARS never knew what it was and how I could get rid of it - you are very lucky that your doctor recognised that it was a fungal infection, mine never did!

I've just remembered, I didn't buy my first bottle of tablets from Holland & Barrett, it was from my local pharmacy. When I went to buy my second bottle my local Hoalland & Barrett didn't sell them (unsure if yours will though) In the end I ordered my second bottle from here

www.bodykind.com/product.asp?CatID=209&ProdID=2142&Referer=Froogle_Natures%20Own%20Probiotic%20Plus% 20%2060%20Vegicaps&PartnerID=6

I think they can be bought cheaper on ebay but I wasn't confident doing that. I was very happy with their service, they arrived very quicky, there was no postarge charge iirc so I would recommend them.

Keep your chin up, as I said my patches cleared up very quickly as soon as I started taking the tablets and altered my diet.

Good luck and let us know how you get on

PortAndLemon · 09/03/2009 22:30

I had a fungal infection on my knees (nice!) and the one thing that shifted it was Scholl athlete's foot cream (which has different ingredients from most of the other athlete's foot creams).

AttilaTheMeerkat · 10/03/2009 07:38

Pityriasis rosea is often mistaken for a fungal infection. It is not fungal and the cause is unknown (it may or may not be viral in nature). It can also spread like mad over time. It often goes of its own accord between 6-12 weeks.

Would ask for a referral to a dermatologist; the GP did not recognise I had PR when I showed her my skin complaint and it took a derm to recognise it. I had 4 patches of it originally on my stomach and the picture girlandboy put up was helpful in my case too.

AttilaTheMeerkat · 10/03/2009 07:39

If it is PR no creams or tablets will help it clear up any quicker.

Original poster

lizandlulu · 10/03/2009 12:16

it originally started as a small patch i thought was just a large spot, just before christmas which got bigger, so have had it for a bloody long time! i do hope it goes soon.

mum went and got me some tablets from the health shop this morning, i cant remember what they are, she brought me them to work to take one and then took them home, the shop said they would help with fungal infections and were pro biotic, but if it is this PR then they wont help will they

OP posts:

PortAndLemon · 10/03/2009 12:37

Mine (the knee stuff that went with Scholl athlete's foot cream) looked rather like that PR picture (although I didn't have all the small patches as well, just a large ringy patch on one knee and a smaller not-large-enough-to-have-go-ringy-yet patch on the other. I assume mine wasn't PR, though, as it went away with the cream (and very quickly, within a few days, although I kept using hte cream for several weeks to make sure it was properly gone). Mine started as an itchy spot too -- I thought it was an insect bite at first.

Original poster

lizandlulu · 10/03/2009 13:30

see still after 3-4 weeks of using the cream i have it is still spreading and not getting any better

OP posts:

PortAndLemon · 10/03/2009 14:44

I used other creams before the Scholl one and it didn't get noticeably better, although they did seem to stop the itching. But PR does sound like a distinct possibility in your case. Can you go back to GP and specifically ask about PR and/or push for a skin scraping to be taken and analysed?

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