Dark spots

December 28, 2013 12:41 PM

A couple of months ago I noticed a couple of dark spots in the back of my neck. Now they are bigger (I was getting my hair cut, they thankfully don't have hair). I'm going to the doctor at some point in the future but I'm wondering if they are 'GO NOW' priority or 'Wait until I get paid'. Any ideas?
posted by anonymous to Health & Fitness (7 answers total)

IANAD. They don't looked raised, which is good. My first guess was something like Tinea Versicolor, which is quite common and benign, though somewhat annoying aesthetically. If it is a kind of fungus, doc will give you a wash for it most likely.

That said, if I were you, I would probably go sooner or later, just to be sure.
posted by Lutoslawski at 12:45 PM on December 28, 2013

I would go immediately
posted by OneHermit at 1:06 PM on December 28, 2013 [1 favorite]

I'd get me to a doctor fairly quickly. They may well be nothing, but spots changing size are cause for concern.
posted by thomas j wise at 1:15 PM on December 28, 2013

Yes, speaking from experience that looks like Tinea. You can either get a prescription cream or a two-dose pill to clear it up. Unfortunately, it does recur.
posted by Sweetie Darling at 2:06 PM on December 28, 2013

Yeah, that looks like tinea to me too. Get seen ASAP and in the mean time you may need to repeatedly wash all your towels with bleach and hot water, or just ditch them all together. If it is tinea or something similar you'll reinfect yourself over and over if you don't use a towel once and then wash it.
posted by These Birds of a Feather at 2:25 PM on December 28, 2013

Yeah. That looks like tinea versicolor. I get it on my abdomen when I'm really sweaty on a regular basis, like in the summer or when I exercise and don't immediately change and shower. I saw a dermatologist and she prescribed an RX dandruff shampoo and I use that as body wash when it occurs. No big deal, just kinda ugly.
posted by joan_holloway at 4:37 PM on December 28, 2013

Go to the doctor now. If there is a 1% chance that your doctor says what my doctor said: "You would have been dead in six months." is that a risk you want to take?
posted by leafwoman at 8:42 AM on December 29, 2013 [1 favorite]