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June 8, 2010 8:32 AM Subscribe
Why do I have dry, flaky skin JUST on my breasts!?
I have dry, flaky skin on my breasts and nowhere else. It's not itchy or red. Just small patches of thin, scaly skin. I moisturize them daily with Bio Oil and have used regular unscented lotion in the past, but no prolonged use of anything has helped! I've had this problem for about 2 years now. The dry patches are on both breasts and mostly on the sides and top. Not underneath. My breasts are small Bs, if it matters. And it's equally bad on days when I do not wear a bra, so I ruled out bra-irritation. I'm 25 and have never been pregnant but am on Nuva Ring.
Playing Google doctor has led me to diagnoses of Paget's disease and cutaneous yeast infection. I have no idea if it is either, but it doesn't seem as bad as other people's examples (Padget's starts with the nipple, which are unaffected in my case) Has anyone else experienced this?
danger.anonymouse[at]gmail.com for further questions/anonymous answers. Thanks!
I have dry, flaky skin on my breasts and nowhere else. It's not itchy or red. Just small patches of thin, scaly skin. I moisturize them daily with Bio Oil and have used regular unscented lotion in the past, but no prolonged use of anything has helped! I've had this problem for about 2 years now. The dry patches are on both breasts and mostly on the sides and top. Not underneath. My breasts are small Bs, if it matters. And it's equally bad on days when I do not wear a bra, so I ruled out bra-irritation. I'm 25 and have never been pregnant but am on Nuva Ring.
Playing Google doctor has led me to diagnoses of Paget's disease and cutaneous yeast infection. I have no idea if it is either, but it doesn't seem as bad as other people's examples (Padget's starts with the nipple, which are unaffected in my case) Has anyone else experienced this?
danger.anonymouse[at]gmail.com for further questions/anonymous answers. Thanks!
I had this once. About two winters ago. I had a hunch I was allergic to laundry detergent (allergies can come on at any time) and that it was only showing up on my breasts because the skin there is more sensitive. So I washed my bras in woolite instead of the usual detergent, and a few weeks later, the problem was gone.
Also try a lotion with shea butter in it. It helped.
posted by millipede at 8:43 AM on June 8, 2010
Also try a lotion with shea butter in it. It helped.
posted by millipede at 8:43 AM on June 8, 2010
My mom had a similar problem when she used a specific brand of shower gel on a cloth. She always applied it to her neck first, so it got the full force of the cleaning chemicals in the gel. Once she diluted the gel down a bit, the problem was cured.
posted by Solomon at 8:51 AM on June 8, 2010
posted by Solomon at 8:51 AM on June 8, 2010
I know this is the easy answer but... what did your gynecologist say? You've had it for two years and are on BC, so you have seen the doctor at least once, and probably twice. If you didn't ask your doctor, why not make an appointment and ask?
posted by brainmouse at 8:52 AM on June 8, 2010
posted by brainmouse at 8:52 AM on June 8, 2010
If it's yeast (weird), diflucan (Rx only) will vanquish it in 2-3 days. I'd actually recommend lanolin cream for the skin dryness (Lansinoh is a good brand, available at drug stores and baby stores). If none of these things help, then it's either the allergy thing, or eczema, as above. Eczema is relatively easy to rule out - the rash has a certain look to it, so you can compare your skin with pictures from the internet. If it doesn't look "eczema-ish", it's not.
Ultimately, you can head a lot of this off by seeing a good dermatologist, who will either recognize the issue on sight, or get the facts with a biopsy.
Good luck getting rid of this thing!
posted by Citrus at 9:04 AM on June 8, 2010
Ultimately, you can head a lot of this off by seeing a good dermatologist, who will either recognize the issue on sight, or get the facts with a biopsy.
Good luck getting rid of this thing!
posted by Citrus at 9:04 AM on June 8, 2010
Do you wash your bras in the same detergent as everything else or are you a hand/delicate washer? I wouldn't totally rule out bra irritation unless you go many days in a row without wearing a bra and it still shows up.
posted by jacquilynne at 10:12 AM on June 8, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by jacquilynne at 10:12 AM on June 8, 2010 [1 favorite]
- Irritation from the detergent that you wash your bra in? (skin irritation can persist for several days after contact with the irritant)
- Irritation from the type of fabric the bra is made of?
- Irritation from build up of sweat, oils, bacteria on the bra (depending on how frequently you wash your bra) ?
- Eczema?
- Psoriasis?
I have psoriasis on my chest (including breasts) and "small patches of thin, scaly skin" describes it exactly - psoriasis spots can be as small as a cigarette end or cottonbud tip.
posted by Year of meteors at 4:47 PM on June 8, 2010
- Irritation from the type of fabric the bra is made of?
- Irritation from build up of sweat, oils, bacteria on the bra (depending on how frequently you wash your bra) ?
- Eczema?
- Psoriasis?
I have psoriasis on my chest (including breasts) and "small patches of thin, scaly skin" describes it exactly - psoriasis spots can be as small as a cigarette end or cottonbud tip.
posted by Year of meteors at 4:47 PM on June 8, 2010
I am going to nth the allergy idea. I used to have an issue near my elbows with certain detergents where I would get dry, crusty patches on the underside of my forearm. It turned out (after a long, and uncomfortable testing period) to be a combination of an allergy to a certain detergent coupled with extra exposure due to my love of keeping my sleeves pushed up to my elbows. Mind you, as a corollary to you mentioning not wearing a bra to test irritation, my condition would persist for well over a week during informal testing. Perhaps an allergist?
posted by Samizdata at 6:25 AM on June 9, 2010
posted by Samizdata at 6:25 AM on June 9, 2010
This thread is closed to new comments.
Yeast is a possibility, and a cream made for "jock itch" or vaginal yeast infections might work. If it doesn't, see your doc - you might have an eczema or other irritation that needs a prescription cream.
posted by Rosie M. Banks at 8:37 AM on June 8, 2010