Diabetes Skin Care
Diabetes affects different body parts of a person including skin. The skin disorders can be seen in normal individual too, but diabetics are more frequently prone to it. Fortunately, most of the skin infections can easily be controlled if detected in early stages. Infection can be bacterial, fungal or simple itching. Some of the specific skin infections frequently seen in the diabetic patients are Dermopathy, Necrobiosis lipoidica, Diabeticorum, Xanthomatosis and Blisters.
Diabetes Skin Infections:
Bacterial infections :- Bacterial infections are more commonly seen in people with diabetes than in normal individuals. Styes - Infection of glands and eyelids, Boils and hair follicles infections, skin and tissue are affected by carbuncles. These infections are spread by few bacterial germs but the most common is Staphylococcus bacteria.
Fungal infections :- Candida-albicans is the yeast-like fungus, responsible for red sore skin with frequent sense of itching and developing into blisters and scales. These patchy infections usually appear at skin folding, where moisture is persisting for longer period, like armpits and groin, under the foreskin, under breast, finger and toes-nail (onychomycosis), in the mouth (thrush), in the vagina etc. Some of the known fungal infections are athlete's foot, ring worms and jock itch.
Itching :- Itching may result from poor blood circulation, dry skin, or any kind of bacterial and viral infection, mostly observed in lower extremities. Wiping your body till completely dry and using good moisturizing agent are the suggestive steps to manage simple itching.
Diabetic Dermopathy :- Dermopathy shows skin changes occurring in diabetics due to affected blood vessels (i.e. oval to circular), slightly indented dry brown to purple and scaly patches. When zinc doses are administered for several weeks it appears to help the lesions resolve over several months, especially when combined with near normal blood sugars.
Necrobiosis Lipoidica Diabeticorum :- Necrobiosis Lipodica Diabecicorum (NLD) seems similar to dermopathy, but it is more worst than the latter, as it penetrates deeply into the skin, making the spots red with a well defined purple line. See your doctor at right time or else it may crack or break.
Xanthomatosis, Sclerosis and Diabetic blisters :- High blood sugar aggravates these conditions; xanthomatosis is slight yellowish pea like pigmentation in feet, arms, legs, hands, buttocks etc. In sclerosis, skin of toe, forehead, hands becomes thick and waxy, and stiffness in the joints is observed. Sometimes painless diabetic blisters erupt in the fingers, toes, hands, forehands and feet look like burned sores. These are commonly seen in overweight, type 1 diabetic, and revert back to normal as soon as blood sugar is controlled out.
Disseminated Granuloma Annulare :- Sharp well define ring or arc shape raised area of skin is seen, then it is nothing but disseminated granuloma annulare. The common body parts where it can be seen are on the fingers or ears.
Acanthosis nigricans :- This is the condition, in which brown tanned patches appear in different parts of the body like neck, armpits and groin, hands, elbow and knees. This is usually seen in the people with overweight; especially women are more likely to be caught with this.
Allergic Reactions :- Visible allergic reaction in the area of skin is examined when insulin is injected and, it may develop rashes.
