The condition in which a person feels pain after touching the skin is called allodynia. This is an unpleasant problem that brings a lot of inconvenience and irritation.
There are several types of allodynia:
They can be either minor or dangerous to human health.
Causes of pain include:
Allodynia can be localized in a specific place, or it can spread over large areas of the body. Severe pain is often observed with exposure that would not cause such a reaction in a healthy person.
To check for the presence of allodynia, you should perform the following test: take a cotton swab and shake it onto the skin. If it hurts, then this disease is present. You can also simply touch the skin with your fingertip.
Allodynia is treatable. The treatment method is individual for each patient and depends on the cause that caused the development of the skin disease. First of all, you should get rid of the factor that provoked the increase in sensitivity.
Symptomatic treatment is also carried out. Doctors prescribe the following remedies:
If the pain torments a person too much and is accompanied by a constant burning sensation, then doctors resort to the use of pharmaceuticals containing narcotic substances.
You should not worry about this: they contain a small amount of these components, so they are not addictive. The drugs are usually prescribed in the form of injections. As soon as the pain subsides, the patient proceeds to conventional treatment.
In addition to medications, doctors advise undergoing physiotherapeutic procedures for allodynia. Reflexology and acupuncture help cope well with pain. Sometimes patients need the help of a psychotherapist.
Also, with the consent of the treating doctor, patients use traditional medicine to treat allodynia. With their help you can eliminate unpleasant sensations. But it is impossible to use unconventional methods without basic therapy, since they are not able to fully cope with pathologies.
The most popular folk remedies for pain are:
This may lead to adverse consequences. Therefore, it is important to consult a doctor in time, undergo the necessary examination to identify the cause of the skin disease and strictly follow all the specialist’s recommendations.
A condition in which the skin hurts from every slight touch is called allodynia. The discomfort associated with this disease significantly impairs the quality of life. There are many reasons for its occurrence and treatment can be quite complex.
This disease can be classified into the following categories:
If your skin hurts every time you touch it, it can be difficult to explain it to others. People simply do not believe that any touch causes pain, and try to explain such sensitivity as psychological problems.
A psychological factor can cause excessive skin sensitivity, like an increased amount of ultraviolet radiation received in the cold season in a solarium or on the beach in the summer, but the causes of pain can also be much more serious:
There is only one symptom – pain. It can be localized or general, acute or minor. In any case, this is not normal, and it is imperative to find out why the skin on your body began to hurt.
In most cases, it is extremely difficult to determine the causes and prescribe treatment for such a condition. Allodynia may occur suddenly, and the patient may not always remember what preceded the disease.
The easiest way to make a diagnosis or prescribe treatment is if your skin starts to hurt after tanning. Whatever causes such a reaction: increased levels of ultraviolet radiation, cosmetics for skin care and tanning, exceeding the time spent in the capsule - there is only one piece of advice: refuse to visit the solarium.
“Accustoming” the body is dangerous - in the future, sensory nerve endings may be damaged, and allodynia will have to be treated.
If your skin hurts when you have a fever, you need to analyze what appeared first, the pain or the increase in temperature.
During fever caused by infection, the skin's sweat glands remove toxins and sweat can cause inflammation of the ducts. In nociceptors - highly sensitive nerve endings located in the lower layers of the epidermis - sensitivity increases during inflammation. This happens if infectious diseases are caused by the introduction of staphylococci into the body.
If pain first appears, which is localized in a certain area, and the temperature is secondary, this may be a manifestation of purulent-inflammatory processes - the formation of a boil or erysipelas. Redness of the skin and pronounced changes appear later - treatment of diseases is carried out in most cases with local remedies.
In case of endocrine disorders or autoimmune diseases, it is important to monitor sugar levels and some special blood parameters if neuropathic pain was caused by injury or previous diseases that you need to try to eliminate or put into remission.
While the causes of allodynia are being established, therapeutic measures are aimed at relieving the pain symptom.
To eliminate pain, the following medications may be prescribed:
Sometimes the pain when touched is so severe that it is necessary to resort to narcotic drugs to eliminate it. But if after 2-3 injections the pain returns and is just as severe, they still refuse to use them - addiction may occur.
To alleviate the condition, the following can be used: physiotherapy procedures, dry heat, reflexology, acupuncture, sessions with a psychotherapist.
The doctor may recommend the latest treatment methods - implantation of devices under the skin that control nerve impulses.
Unfortunately, modern medicine cannot always help patients normalize sensitivity, and the condition may worsen over time. Some therapeutic measures can even worsen the condition - doctors act almost “blindly”.
If brain function is impaired, skin sensitivity cannot be eliminated; this leads to gradual changes in the psyche and inadequate reactions to ordinary stimuli and circumstances.
Skin diseases are different. Some manifest themselves actively, while others can only be determined by pressing, that is, by the tactical method.
If the skin on your leg hurts when you touch it, you most likely have allodynia.
This is a fairly rare disease and not fully understood, it occurs on any part of the body, but most often affects the arms and legs.
This problem entails not only uncomfortable sensations, but also a psychological factor. People around me do not see the disease and often perceive it with skepticism, which brings conflicting thoughts to its owner: is this not a figment of my imagination?
Unfortunately, allodynia still exists and the patient actually experiences a lot of unpleasant sensations.
Symptoms of the disease include the following factors:
Any of these symptoms is a reason to seek help from a doctor. Do not self-medicate, do not leave everything to chance with the favorite expression “maybe it will go away on its own!” . Otherwise it will be worse later.
So what is this disease that causes pain at the slightest touch for no apparent reason?
No, a person does not go crazy, despite the fact that the cause of the illness really often lies in the brain. But not always.
Experts have identified several reasons for the development of a disease in which the skin hurts:
This is an incomplete list of existing causes that cause a feeling as if the leg hurts or burns when touched, so do not rely only on the above factors in determining the disease. The right decision would be to see a doctor.
Treatment of this problem comes down to eliminating the pain that occurs when touching the skin of the legs. If you carefully study the causes of the disease, it will become clear that almost all of them are incurable.
You cannot get rid of the consequences of meningitis or head trauma, no matter how much you would like. The same applies to AIDS and diabetes. In any case, there is no need to despair; a course of treatment against allodynia will return the tactile sensations of the legs to normal or reduce the pain threshold.
It is worth remembering that a dermatologist is not the only doctor with whom you will have to talk. In this case, the problem is more of a neurological nature; allodynia cannot be classified as a skin disease. Consequently, treatment will be carried out under the supervision of a neurologist, to whom the patient will be sent by a dermatologist.
So, here is a list of medications that a patient will have to deal with on the road to recovery.
Local analgesic drugs. These can be ointments, gels and creams containing pain-relieving components.
Remember that you cannot prescribe ointments and gels on your own; this must be done by a doctor.
In addition to painkillers, anticonvulsants are prescribed to relieve muscle tension and restore normal blood circulation.
Patients with allodynia often complain of poor sleep, because at night the skin also hurts. In this case, sedatives will help normalize the correct daily routine. Both ready-made preparations, for example, valerian infusion, and other means are used. Tea from a collection of soothing herbs will help you relax and fall asleep.
Among medications, attention should be paid to the following drugs:
In some cases, a course of antidepressants is required. They also struggle with irritability and nervousness. In a word, they put in order the nervous system, the failure of which causes pain and burning sensations when touching the skin of the legs.
If the skin hurts very much and a constant burning sensation is felt, the doctor prescribes medications that contain narcotic substances. There is no need to be afraid. Small doses and a short course will not turn a patient into a drug addict and will not cause addiction. As a rule, several injections are prescribed. After stopping treatment with narcotic drugs, the pain returns, but does not bother the patient as much. Further treatment is carried out in the usual way.
Allodynia is a disease that is expressed by pain when touching the skin of the legs or other area of the body for no apparent reason. Do not endure the pain, seek help from the hospital, because the cause of this problem is internal and most often has a neurological nature.
Human skin is its protective barrier, and well-groomed skin performs its functions better and looks very beautiful. For some reason, all women take care of their facial skin to a greater or lesser extent, but not everyone knows what to do if the skin on their legs becomes dry and begins to peel.
Flaky and dry skin on the legs not only looks unsightly, but often the skin pathology is accompanied by unpleasant sensations – itching or “tightening”.
To effectively eliminate this unpleasant skin defect, you should determine the causes of its occurrence, which can be divided into 4 large groups:
Depending on the causes of dehydration of the skin of the legs, at which peeling begins, measures should be taken to eliminate it.
The skin on the legs begins to become dry and peeling as a result of exposure to a number of irritants:
The structure of the epidermis changes with age - the skin becomes thinner, loses moisture and begins to peel off. This is due to the gradual age-related disappearance of collagen fibers that form the mass of the dermis, the water-lipid mantle ceases to cope with its duties due to a decrease in the amount of fluid entering the epidermis, as well as emerging disturbances in the secretion of sebum, etc.
These gerontological changes cause moisture deficiency and the appearance of dry and flaky skin on the legs.
When skin diseases occur, the skin barrier is disrupted, which initially leads to loss of moisture, that is, it is one of the causes of dry skin on the legs, which often also flakes.
If the dry skin of the feet is caused by a fungal infection, itching may occur - the skin between the toes itches (the feet can also be affected). In this case, treatment should be carried out by a dermatologist, based on mandatory laboratory tests.
The appearance of dry and flaky skin tissue on the legs can be caused by eczema, psoriasis, exfoliative dermatitis, Kawasaki disease (typical for children and adolescents). Treatment is carried out by a dermatologist according to the diagnosis.
In addition to direct dermatological diseases, dry, flaky and irritated skin on the legs can be the result of a number of somatic diseases:
Peeling, dry skin on the legs can occur as a result of the use of steroid hormonal drugs (externally) - even if they were used for a short time, they cause dysfunction of the horny skin.
A healthy diet should contain sufficient quantities of vegetable oils, vegetables, fruits, fish and seafood.
Lack of vitamins - vitamin deficiency - is also the reason why the epidermis of the legs becomes dry.
You should drink more than 1.5 liters of water (juices, mineral water, etc.) per day.
Regular consumption of fast foods, coffee, alcohol and tobacco products ultimately leads to the appearance of dry epidermis on the legs.
Often the cause of dry skin on the hands and feet is an allergic reaction to food, cosmetics, synthetic products and materials.
In addition, dryness and flaking after depilation (especially if done with a razor) can be called a type of allergic reaction of the skin on the legs.
Even with flaky and very dry epidermis on the legs, regardless of the cause of the pathology, the best way to eliminate the defect is to moisturize the skin tissue.
Substances that moisturize the skin are divided into two types:
An innovation in the hydration of the epidermis is aquaporins, essentially the water gates of the cell, responsible for the entry and exit of fluid from cellular tissue.
In 2003, scientists P. Agre and R. Mackinan were awarded the Nobel Prize (in chemistry) for the discovery of specific protein compounds of aquaporins.
In particular, aquaporin-3 (AQP3) is located in the tissues of the epidermis and is responsible for its hydration. It is easily destroyed under the influence of acid peeling, so beloved by women, and UV irradiation. With age (over 40 years), the amount of aquaporins decreases significantly, which is why skin tissues become dry and sluggish.
Substances that stimulate the body's production of AQP3 were discovered, and cosmetic manufacturers began to include them in their products (trademark Hydreis). These cosmetics can improve the condition of even very dry, flaky skin on the feet.
If you do foot baths, this will help quickly solve the problem of dry skin and peeling on the feet and toes.
It is recommended to do baths twice a week using chamomile, oak bark, celandine, hops and other medicinal plants. The effect of such procedures manifests itself quite quickly - the skin of the feet ceases to be dry and begins to look healthy.
After the bath, moisturizer should be applied to your feet.
There are a large number of moisturizing masks, both factory-made and those that are easy to make at home yourself.
Several homemade moisturizing masks
Mix softened butter (1 tsp), egg yolk, a little baby cream and finely grated raw potatoes (2 tsp). Mix everything into a homogeneous mass and apply to the skin of your feet (pre-steamed). Cover the mask with cling film, then with a warm scarf or blanket. After leaving for 20 minutes, remove and apply nourishing cream. Make a mask up to 2 times a week.
Grind an apple (medium) into a pulp, add 2 tsp. honey and 5 tsp. vegetable (any, but preferably olive) oil. Mix the mixture well and apply, after steaming your feet, wrap in film and a warm blanket. Leave for up to 25 minutes, then rinse and apply a nourishing (or moisturizing) cream. Make a mask up to 2 times a week.
Grind the yolk with 2 teaspoons of rich homemade sour cream, add 2-3 crushed white grapes, 2 drops each of peach and apricot oil. Mix everything until smooth and apply to steamed skin of the feet. Leave for up to 25 minutes, then rinse and apply nourishing cream to the skin of your feet. Make a mask up to 2 times a week.
You can add essential oils (tea tree, patchouli or sandalwood) to any moisturizer. If the skin of the hands and feet has become very dry, the enriched cream can be used as a mask, but must be applied to steamed skin.
Cosmetologists do not recommend overusing scrubs and peels when caring for dry and thin skin of the hands and feet - they injure already dry skin.
To improve the health of dry skin on the legs, care should be carried out regularly and the most effective masks and baths should be selected experimentally.
The cause of skin pain on the leg when touched worries those who are directly affected by skin pain that does not appear externally. It hurts, but there is no redness, nothing resembling an external skin lesion.
Remember! Nothing occurs in the body without a reason.
Let’s say there is a problem area of skin on the body that hurts when touched. To determine the cause, remember what has happened recently - perhaps the answer will be found there.
When looking for the cause, remember: knowing the reasons and where the skin hurts is halfway to victory. In different parts of the limb there are different nerve endings and muscles that can be damaged and cause pain. On the thigh, kneecap, foot, fingers - there may be something that can ruin your life.
After finding out the cause, we find out why the disease develops? What does the appearance of such pain mean?
Doctors often say that diabetes is observed - diabetic neuropathy (nerve dysfunction). The disease develops from the lower extremities, affecting the long nerves located in the legs, then moves to the stomach, arms, and other parts of the body. The pain does not stop and is of a varied nature: itches, burns, and gives rise to goosebumps. Convulsions occur. At the site of the affected nerve endings, the sensitivity of the skin increases, and it hurts under any pressure.
A phenomenon closely related to this is allodynia. They have nothing in common with hypersensitivity, causing similar sensations: the skin hurts terribly when touched. Doctors identify several types of exposure that can cause discomfort:
Allodynia causes great trouble: you cannot sleep peacefully at night under a woolen blanket, it brings pain. The same applies to bed linen. Such torment causes insomnia.
Knee pain
The knees can suffer from muscular fibromyalgia, fibromyositis - pain points on the human body are constantly in a state of increased sensitivity. There are 11 points, in addition to the knees, located in the elbows, buttocks, neck, back of the head, waist and shoulders. The skin hurts due to inflammatory processes.
Typical symptoms are constant fatigue, bad mood, depression, depression, accompanied by sleep disturbances. It gets worse if the affected area is exposed to cold, or severe physical activity begins. The person is unable to move. Dermatological scientists have found the cause of such inflammation: increased sensitivity of neurons in the spinal cord and brain.
To cope with fibromyalgia, do exercises, stretch your muscles, massage your sore knee, and simply rest.
Disturbances in the functioning of nerve endings in the body and brain are accompanied by pain that can be expressed on the skin. The mechanism for perceiving external impulses is damaged, the person seems to be in terrible pain, although this is not the case. Occurs after a traumatic brain injury or stroke. Common inflammations are associated with colds, being in an uncomfortable position and prolonged physical activity. Dermatologists, after consultation, can refer you to a neurologist.
The ability to determine the origin of subcutaneous pain is to observe body temperature. Two scenarios:
Depending on the cause of the pain, appropriate treatment is prescribed. Seeing a doctor in advance will prevent possible complications.
People try to get used to pain, not pay attention, being exposed to danger. You can't do that! If pain manifests itself, there is a reason, ignoring which means neglecting your health. Think about the consequences, from the development of diabetes to more serious ones.
If symptoms appear, you should consult a doctor and stop activities that could cause pain. If pain occurs after visiting a solarium, stop the procedures and consult a doctor. Reduce time spent under ultraviolet rays.
Why does my skin hurt? The reasons may be the following:
The last reason may be associated with such ailments as:
The disease can be caused by radiation or chemical influences: ultraviolet burns as a result of prolonged exposure to the sun, under a lamp in a solarium. You can get a first or second degree burn, which causes pain. Why does my skin hurt when it touches something? You may be allergic to the fabric of clothing and bedding. Rarely seen. Possible due to increased sensitivity to the material from which clothing and bedding are made. Moreover, natural materials can also cause an allergic reaction: linen, cotton, wool. Allergic reactions to bedding appear where the body comes into contact with them during sleep.
It appears as shingles. At the site of the future rash, corresponding to the location of the fibers of the infected nerve, burning pain suddenly begins. They exhaust the patient from 4 to 12 days. Often the pain intensifies and becomes unbearable with the slightest movement, touch or cooling. This condition is called shingles in the medical literature.
In medical practice, one of the most common causes of pain when touching the skin is called diabetes mellitus (diabetic neuropathy). Pain with polyneuropathy is usually constant, burning, cold or itchy. Sometimes it seems to stab, shoot or pierce. In this place, the skin changes sensitivity. At first, the pain is localized on the legs and arms. Then they spread to the back, stomach, gradually spreading throughout the body. This is because the longer nerves are affected first. The phenomenon when the skin experiences pain from the most gentle touch is called allodynia. It must be distinguished from hyperalgesia, pain hypersensitivity, when the slightest painful effects give rise to intense pain. Depending on the nature of the impact, it varies:
Due to hyperalgesia and allodynia, a person cannot tolerate the touch of a woolen blanket, and sometimes even ordinary bedding. Sleep is disturbed: the torment intensifies at night. Debilitating pain provokes depression, which again increases pain. Fibromyalgia or fibromyositis is a condition of the body in conditions of constant muscle pain in certain areas of the body, the so-called pain points. There are 11 of them. They are located symmetrically on both sides of the body in the neck, back of the head, shoulder girdle, elbows, buttocks and knees. Pain in these areas is due to inflammatory processes. The disease is accompanied by fatigue, sleep disturbances, and depression. The person is psychologically depressed and depressed. In the mornings and evenings, 70% of patients have limited movements. As a result of research, it was revealed that the cause of the disease is an increase in the sensitivity of neurons in the brain and spinal cord. As a result, a person experiences a feeling of pain in the absence of foci of excitation, that is, for no apparent reason. Exertion, hypothermia, immobility aggravate the condition. Demyelinating diseases are a group of diseases of the nervous system when the myelin sheath of nerve fibers is damaged, causing the appearance of various disorders, including impaired skin sensitivity and pain. Pathological processes in the brain are sometimes accompanied by pain. In the middle part of the brain, all impulses from the external and internal environment are recorded and analyzed. Damage to this area leads to a defensive tactile reaction, which consists of exaggerated painful sensitivity to light touch. This is caused by a stroke or severe traumatic brain injury. Sometimes pain to touch occurs because the part of the brain that regulates the assessment of the effects of different stimuli is damaged. As a result, a sick person may react in unexpected ways to simply touching the skin. Spinal cord diseases are a group of pathologies that differ in symptoms. They cause disorders, including increased skin sensitivity. The appearance of pain in the skin depends on which part of the spinal cord the pathology is present in. When the spinal cord is compressed, pain appears in the middle of the back. If the nerves of the cervical spine are pinched, pain appears in the arms. With pathology of the lumbar region, pain in the lower extremities. If the coccygeal part of the spinal cord is damaged, severe pain in the legs, in the perineum, and in the coccygeal region. Damage to the sacral region is accompanied by pain in the skin of this part of the body and lower abdomen.
The sensation when the skin hurts plays a protective role in the body. Pain indicates that there is a problem in some system. This signal must be responded to in a timely and correct manner. Does your skin start to hurt after visiting a solarium and using cosmetics? Visits should be avoided. “Accustoming” the body to pain is dangerous. In the future, the sensitivity of the nerve endings may be impaired, and allodynia will have to be treated. Pain on the scalp is not a common occurrence. They can have different intensities: from weak to pronounced. They may have different localizations. The entire surface of the skull, forehead, crown and area behind the ear may be affected. Massage can help with scalp pain if the cause is stress, a tight hat or hairstyle. Itchy skin can be an allergic reaction in response to the use of hair care products. To get rid of pain caused by these reasons, you just need to eliminate them. If the pain does not stop, you should consult a doctor and report the occurrence of a similar condition. With fibromyalgia, the patient gets some relief from moderate physical activity, massage, short rest or a warm bath. You can contact a dermatologist and he will solve the problem if it falls within his competence. Often pain when touching the skin is of neurological origin, so you need to go to a neurologist. Most likely, neuralgia of the cutaneous branches of a nerve will be detected. It occurs as a result of inflammation of the sympathetic nodes located in the spinal canal. Neuralgia can be caused by a cold with minor hypothermia or prolonged uncomfortable posture. It is possible that pain may be a harbinger of a more serious disease - intercostal neuralgia or pinched nerve. In order to start treatment on time and have peace of mind about your health, you should not delay your visit to the doctor. Often pain is accompanied by high body temperature. There may be 2 options:
In both cases, treatment is carried out with local agents. In case of pain caused by diabetes mellitus or other endocrine disorders, it is necessary to monitor the level of glucose in the blood and special blood parameters. While the causes of allodynia are being established, therapeutic measures are needed aimed at relieving the pain symptom. To eliminate pain, the following may be prescribed:
In some cases, the pain when touching the skin is so unbearable that narcotic substances are administered to relieve it. However, it may return after 3 injections. Even if the pain is just as strong, you should refuse to administer drugs to avoid addiction.
The use of physiotherapy, reflexology, acupuncture, and sessions with a psychotherapist are used to alleviate the condition. A new healing method is widely used - subcutaneous implantation of devices that correct the flow of nerve signals. Since this group of diseases has not been sufficiently studied, doctors often have to act at their own peril and risk. Some treatment methods may not only fail to improve, but over time may worsen the patient's condition. If painful skin sensitivity is caused by organic or functional disorders of the brain, then it cannot be eliminated, since it can lead to inadequate responses to ordinary irritations and circumstances. Irreversible mental changes occur. The feeling of pain is one of the body's important reactions to danger. Pain is just the tip of the iceberg. Pain signals that something is wrong with one of the organs. The causes of skin pain when touched can be extremely serious, so at the first symptoms you should consult a doctor.
Often people turn to doctors complaining of pain when touching the skin. They note that the symptom occurs for no apparent reason. The syndrome can spread to any part of the body. Why does the skin on my leg hurt when touched?
Often, the pain of the outer covering greatly torments the patient: he feels an exaggerated sensation of pain, which is often not even associated with irritants.
The condition, in which the skin on the thigh and other parts of the legs hurts when touched, is provoked by several factors.
They can be either minor or dangerous to human health. Causes of pain include:
Doctors also include a hereditary predisposition to allodynia as a possible cause. But the disease is rarely transmitted.
Allodynia can be localized in a specific place, or it can spread over large areas of the body. Severe pain is often observed with exposure that would not cause such a reaction in a healthy person. To check for the presence of allodynia, you should perform the following test: take a cotton swab and shake it onto the skin. If it hurts, then this disease is present. You can also simply touch the skin with your fingertip.
Pain is often accompanied by other signs of pathology: goosebumps, burning, itching, tingling. If the patient has a fever, then you should be wary: this indicates the infectious and inflammatory nature of the disease that provokes skin pain.
Allodynia is treatable. The treatment method is individual for each patient and depends on the cause that caused the development of the skin disease. First of all, you should get rid of the factor that provoked the increase in sensitivity. Symptomatic treatment is also carried out. Doctors prescribe the following remedies:
You should not worry about this: they contain a small amount of these components, so they are not addictive. The drugs are usually prescribed in the form of injections. As soon as the pain subsides, the patient proceeds to conventional treatment. In addition to medications, doctors advise undergoing physiotherapeutic procedures for allodynia. Reflexology and acupuncture help cope well with pain. Sometimes patients need the help of a psychotherapist. Also, with the consent of the treating doctor, patients use traditional medicine to treat allodynia. With their help you can eliminate unpleasant sensations. But it is impossible to use unconventional methods without basic therapy, since they are not able to fully cope with pathologies. The most popular folk remedies for pain are:
Before using folk remedies, you should definitely consult a doctor: some components of folk remedies can cause an allergic reaction.
You should not treat allodynia on your own.
Photo gallery: Why does the skin hurt when touched?
Some people face a problem when, without obvious provoking factors, the skin begins to hurt at the slightest touch. In this case, unpleasant sensations are not localized in one place, but spread to the stomach, back, legs, arms and other parts of the body. Such a symptom can significantly worsen a person’s life, because constant discomfort causes irritation, sometimes depression and sleep disturbances.
When the skin is hypersensitive to the lightest touch, in medical practice this is called allodynia. This syndrome is considered neuropathic, since it most often appears due to neurological disorders of various types.
Allodynia of the skin is characterized by the occurrence of pain in response to a stimulus that does not cause pain in a healthy person: this can be a simple touch with a finger, contact with clothing or bedding, sometimes patients experience discomfort even when the wind blows. The resulting pain reaction is characterized as constant, itchy, burning or cold. Usually distributed throughout the body, but with some neurological disorders (for example, pathology of the spinal cord), discomfort is concentrated in one area. Depending on the nature of the irritation, skin allodynia occurs:
Any form of this pathology does not occur on its own; it is caused by various diseases and malfunctions of the body systems.
The reasons for this may be the following factors:
Often this problem of pain when touched develops against the background of neurological disorders:
Many of these diseases can develop as a result of such harmless factors as stress, lack or excess of vitamins, hypothermia, a common cold, or prolonged uncomfortable positions.
If the skin begins to hurt after touching and an increased temperature is noted, you should suspect the following processes in the body:
If a change in sensitivity appears suddenly without other clinical manifestations, there is no need to let this condition take its course. Such a symptom may be a sign of a serious illness that requires special treatment. Take care of yourself and be healthy!
Soreness of the skin, especially if it intensifies when touched, causes misunderstanding and anxiety. The cause of discomfort can be viral, fungal infections and even nervous disorders, as well as a number of other factors. Everyone should know why the skin hurts, because this will help not to miss the onset of serious diseases.
Sometimes the skin hurts without a pathological reason, this occurs due to sudden stimulation of nociceptors - pain receptors located in the dermis. The discomfort caused by a needle prick is local and goes away quickly.
If the skin hurts severely, especially when touched, then it is necessary to look for the causes of this pathology. Most often discomfort is caused by:
Often the skin hurts due to a viral or fungal infection. In the first case, it may be the papilloma virus, and in the second, any type of lichen.
It would seem, how can you miss papillomas on the skin or flaky spots of fungal infection? Many people do not know that there is a flat variety of warts caused by the above-mentioned virus, and the so-called pityriasis rosea. Both manifestations of the disease on the skin are practically invisible, because they do not rise above the integument.
They are also light flesh-colored (despite its name, pityriasis rosea is yellow to brown in color). But when you touch them, the skin hurts, sometimes itching begins.
You can still see flat papillomas and pityriasis rosea. To do this, you need to direct the light source to the place of discomfort and examine it carefully. Flat papilloma looks like an oval with a diameter of 3-5 mm, a bit like a callus. Pityriasis rosea can vary in size, depending on the severity of the condition. This is an irregularly shaped flesh-colored spot with a “fringe” around the edges.
If papillomas and lichen are detected, you must urgently consult a doctor; it is impossible to cure these diseases on your own, and starting to take serious medications without consultation is dangerous to your health.
Another reason why skin becomes sore is the formation of a carbuncle. Carbunculosis is a skin disease accompanied by inflammation of the sebaceous glands, hair follicles and nearby subcutaneous fat. At first, a carbuncle develops on the body without obvious signs; it is revealed only by sharp pain when touched and slight swelling.
Later, the pus that accumulates at the site of inflammation begins to poison nearby tissues and the entire body. The affected area becomes inflamed, acquires a bluish tint, and when pressed, a shooting pain occurs. In the later stages of the disease, severe intoxication of the body and necrosis of the tissues in which the carbuncle has developed begins.
Treatment in the early stages can be carried out using Vishnevsky ointment and chloramphenicol. Treat your skin with an alcohol antiseptic after taking a shower, in the morning and at lunchtime, and at night after treatment, apply a cotton pad with ointment to the affected area and secure it. In the morning, remove and wipe the carbuncle first with water and then with alcohol.
In the later stages, only a surgeon can help by cutting out the carbuncle, because over time this purulent formation will no longer be able to resolve.
Another answer to the question of why the skin hurts may be lymphadenitis - inflammation of the lymph nodes. It occurs due to experienced or chronic inflammatory processes:
The lymph node expands in the tissues, touching pain receptors in the dermis. Local swelling occurs and aching pain appears when pressed. Most often, lymphadenitis on the body appears in the area of the ears, neck, chest and abdomen.
Treatment of lymphadenitis involves taking antihistamines or anti-inflammatory drugs, as well as treating its cause.
Hidradenitis is an inflammation of the sweat glands, accompanied by suppuration and inflammation. It occurs most often in the scrotum area in men, near the labia and around the nipples in women, as well as in the armpit and on the feet. At the site where hidradenitis develops, the skin turns red, swelling appears, it is painful to touch, and sometimes lymph can leak out, causing itching.
Why do sweat glands become inflamed? Most often this occurs due to poor personal hygiene, wearing artificial fabrics in which the skin does not breathe, excessive use of antiperspirants and excess weight. It is easier to avoid hidradenitis than to treat it, because in most cases surgery is required to remove clogged sweat glands and purulent fistulas that form during inflammation.
Problems with the nervous system often result in skin pain. The problem here is not the excitability of the nociceptors, but their excessive sensitivity, which causes a strong response from the somatosensory centers of the spinal cord. It transmits signals back to the skin, but they are so strong that the person experiences pain.
Polyneuropathy can occur due to psychological or physical trauma. When touched, the skin begins to ache sharply, sometimes discomfort occurs even without touching. Treatment of the disease depends on its origin. It is imperative to undergo psychological rehabilitation; sometimes training with a psychologist and taking sedatives are required.
The concept of “neurosis” includes several different emotional pathologies, so it is a combined condition. It can be described as a disorder of the nervous system caused by chronic fatigue, severe emotional shock or lack of sleep. Symptoms of neurosis can be:
Many patients noticed that, in addition to these signs, their skin hurt at the slightest touch, sometimes it even itched.
If the skin is painful to touch during neurosis, it is necessary to treat the “nerves” and not just relieve the discomfort. First of all, you need to have a good rest, spending a week away from work and noisy places, for example, in a sanatorium or in a country house. It is also worth completely eliminating irritating factors during treatment. If the neurosis is severe, you cannot do without consulting a psychotherapist, who, if necessary, will prescribe sedatives.
Sometimes an allergy to clothing or food begins with the skin being painful to touch, it itching, but no redness. At this time, special cells in the blood - basophils - release a substance - histamine, which is responsible for the allergic and inflammatory response. Over time, a swelling appears at the site of the “reaction” and turns red.
When an allergy is a rare phenomenon for a person, then the resulting pain in the skin can be eliminated with the help of antihistamines, which will dampen the allergic reaction. The most inexpensive and accessible are drugs such as Loratidine and Fexofenadine, they cause the breakdown of histamine and have a calming effect.
If the allergy often makes itself felt, accompanied not only by redness, pain and itching, but also swelling of the mucous membrane of the throat or nose, then you cannot treat it yourself, you must consult a doctor.
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Soreness of the skin, which intensifies when touched, does not occur without a reason, so it is necessary to understand its origin, and if you cannot do this on your own, contact a neurologist and dermatologist.