The-Rash-That-Must-Not-Be-Named

August 10, 2006 6:55 AM

Am I the next Harry Potter or does this mysterious rash have a point?

I have a small -- about half an inch long -- lightening bolt shaped rash on my wrist. Here is a very large picture of it.

It doesn't itch. It doesn't hurt. It doesn't go away.

I first noticed it two weeks ago and it hasn't really changed (maybe it's slightly darker, but not bigger) in that time. I feel silly going to the doc b/c there are no adverse effects.

I was thinking that it might be a burn (though I don't recall being burned), but again, it doesn't hurt (at all) or itch (at all) and that hasn't been my experience with burns.

So, what do you think it is? Anyone had a rash/burn that never itched or hurt and then went away on it's own?

posted by 10ch to health & fitness (7 comments total)

It could be a friction burn that you got in your sleep, or when you were otherwise not paying attention. I had one on my foot that looked similar, was completely painless, and went away after 6 weeks.
posted by aye at 7:03 AM on August 10, 2006

It looks a bit like the kind of burn I have had in the past from bumping into the oven rack while moving food into or out of the oven.
posted by sueinnyc at 7:39 AM on August 10, 2006

Definetly a friction burn bro. I get them when I roll around in my sleep or when I accidently rub my arm on a laminate desk (like u are in the pic)
posted by deeman at 9:03 AM on August 10, 2006

You don't happen to wear a watch, do you?
posted by Addlepated at 10:48 AM on August 10, 2006

Oddly I have not worn a watch for about a year and just picked one up last week and have been wearing it BUT the rash/burn showed up the week before I bought the watch.
posted by 10ch at 11:44 AM on August 10, 2006

From the location it looks like you could have rested your wrist on a surface that had a bit of some sustance on it that is not intended for contact with skin
But also, heat will do this, even if it's not a true 'burn'. Once over several days I sat with my back up against a heater; never felt painfully hot, but it did turn the skin brown there for a while.

But hey - it wouldn't hurt to try some incantations, if they're small and friendly ones.
posted by niloticus at 3:20 PM on August 10, 2006

New soap? Hand sanitizer? Laundry detergent? Pet?

The reason I asked about the watch is that, when I wash my hands while wearing my watch, sometimes soap gets stuck under the watch is I get a circular red patch from where my skin got irritated.

In any event I wouldn't be too worried about it if it doesn't itch or hurt. Maybe the next time you're in to see the doctor about something else you can bring it up. IANAD, yadda yadda.
posted by Addlepated at 4:37 PM on August 10, 2006