Skin breakouts cause physical and emotional discomfort. They can make you feel self-conscious about your appearance, especially when breakouts occur on the face. Their concomitant itchy and painful sensations may become so intense that it is difficult to concentrate. There are many different types of skin breakouts that cause these discomforts.
Acne
Acne disfigures the face and other body parts of many people, not just teenagers. The hairs of human skin are associated with glands that secrete an oily substance called sebum. This oil normally moves to the surface of the body through pores in the skin, but sometimes blockage occurs. The blocked sebum and dead skin cells combine to form little white bumps called whiteheads, and when this material gets oxidized, the white bumps become blackheads. If blockage persists, the walls of the tube-shaped hair follicle may fracture. Surrounding tissue may suffer inflammation, and zits or pimples develop. In severe cases, the underlying tissue suffers damage, and hard painful lumps called nodules may develop deep within the skin. Alternatively, deep pockets of tissue may become filled with pus, resulting in cysts.
Various Diseases
There are a number of diseases that result in skin breakouts. Chicken pox, also known as varicella, can cause skin breakouts. The same type of virus causes herpes zoster, better known as shingles, later in life. Measles is a common childhood disease that affects the skin. Variola, or smallpox, used to be a widespread affliction. Leishmaniasis, a parasitic disease, and lupus erythematosus, an autoimmune disease, also affect the skin.
Allergic Contact Dermatitis
Some plant components, such as urushiol, may cause the skin to break out with an itchy rash and blisters. Urushiol is a component of such plants as poison ivy and the poisonwood tree. Upon initial contact with urushiol, antibodies are formed to protect the body against the substance. These antibodies may overreact when a person comes into contact with urushiol a second time, and a skin breakout results, technically known as allergic contact dermatitis. Industrial chemicals, clothing, cosmetics or jewelry may also cause allergic contact dermatitis.
Eczema
Besides pimples and blisters, the skin of eczema patients acquires crusty scales that ooze pus. The intense itchiness of eczema provokes vigorous scratching that further damages the skin. Eczema frequently affects infants, but it can occur in people of all ages. Eczema is an enduring affliction that does not go away for a long time. Even after it disappears, it tends to recur. Hypersensitivity and heredity are factors in some forms of eczema.
Urticaria
Urticaria, or hives, expresses itself in round red skin rashes. They are usually due to hypersensitivity to certain substances. Some people get hives from eating particular foods, such as eggs. Others get hives from medicines, like penicillin. They often occur in conjunction with other allergic conditions, such as asthma or hay fever.
Psoriasis
Psoriasis is a chronic skin disorder in which areas of the scalp or other cutaneous surfaces become raised and reddish. Whitish scales often form on top of the underlying eruption. If the patient removes these scales, bleeding results. The skin may become dry and cracked. In some cases, fingernails and toenails become discolored. A basic feature of psoriasis is the production of too many skin cells, and the accumulation of dead skin cells on the surface of the skin. It is a recurring condition that flares up as a result of a variety of conditions, such as emotional stress or strep throat. Its cause is unknown, but heredity and a faulty immune system seem to be factors, according to the Maryland Medical Center.
References
- University of Maryland Medical Center: Acne
- University of Michigan Health Service: Acne
- Georgetown University Medical Center: Dermatology Patient Resource, Acne
- Brown University Health Education: Acne
- Lund University: Allergic Contact Dermatitis from...
- "Skin Pharmacology and Applied Skin Physiology"; Stereochemical...; C. Hansson, et al; 2003
- University of Massachusetts Amherst: Poison Ivy - an Exaggerated Immune Response to...
- MedilinePlus: Contact Dermatitis
- University of Maryland Medical Center: Contact Dermatitis - Overview
- University of Maryland Medical Center: Atopic Eczema
