I know medical questions aren’t allowed on this subreddit, but this one was so mundane and yet so oddly specific that I figured this was the best place to ask.
My left middle finger keeps getting an annoying, itchy rash that is covered in tiny pimples. It’s worst on the sides of the finger. I know eczema is a thing, but I’ve never heard of it being specific to one finger.
The closest thing I could find is maybe dyshidrosis, which can give you itchy in the side of your finger. but I think those bumps have fluid in them like blisters, and I don’t think my bumps have fluid.
If it helps, I usually wear rings on my middle fingers, but I haven’t worn any in a while, and my right middle finger is totally fine. I’ve been having problems with this specific finger getting insanely itchy rashes for over a year or two.
Sounds like dyshidrotic eczema aka dyshidrosis to me. I had that for years. I’d get slightly different effects depending on precisely what type of skin it was on… finger tips, sides of fingers, tops, palm, sides of hands… also it was on my toes a lot. I’d get tiny dots under the skin, sometimes in clusters, sometimes red bumps like pimples, and they’d burst and leave ‘dry skin’ and peeling. It could be itchy as hell and also made stuff like washing dishes hellish, like my hands were covered in papercuts. My hands at times itched like mad, to where I’d practically strip the skin off scratching them, and that would help for about 1.5 seconds. It would sometimes go away for a week or two and then come back, but was present 95% of the time.
It was misdiagnosed by PCPs as athlete’s foot several times, even when it was on my hands, which didn’t make much sense but doctors were “oh yeah! it can be on your hands!”. But my hands were quite dry. The prescription steroid/antifungal always cleared it up and it would go away for months, but OTC antifungal creams and sprays did nothing. Hmm.
Anyway, I finally figured out it def wasn’t athlete’s foot and saw a dermatologist. He said dyshidrosis immediately. I’d suggest to see a derma if possible. Anyway, if it is that, the treatment, other than temporary abatement from steroids, is figuring out what the trigger is. It’s a pretty common autoimmune condition with ‘unknown triggers’, which I interpret as meaning it’s different for various people. For me, it turned out to be gluten. I had to go GF for Celiac disease and my hand & foot skin issue cleared up entirely for the first time in 20 years.
I figured it wasn’t dyshidrosis, but after reading about your experience I am definitely giving it more consideration.
Hope that it’s not, if it is , hope it’s not like mine.
I live in fear of it, when mine starts I know I am about to start shedding skin, and it’s all cracked and itchy and hurty
I’m sorry yours is so bad, but dyshydrotic eczema can be very mild and anywhere in between.
Really? So I just rolled a nat 1 on that.
Well I guess I’m glad most people do t deal with it
That was how I felt. I was so pleased when it would go away for a while, then I’d notice the first little vesicles or bumps forming and be like fuck. I became sort of obsessed with monitoring it, though there was nothing I could do. I guess I could have gone to urgent care and gotten the steroid creme, if I had actually had insurance or $400 to spare.
I too had dyshidrosis, but like you it was only on my right middle finger. I assumed it couldn’t be from washing dishes as I thought it would affect more than one finger, but I was wrong (I started using rubber gloves for the dishes). Skin is weird
Definitely could be. Not sure what other conditions might do this… dishydrosis covers internal reactions to foods as well as topical exposure to chemicals. I’ll note also that the one finger or one toe thing happened to me at various times, which suggested to me it wasn’t my skin being exposed to an irritant. Sometimes it was the same fingers or toes on both sides of my body, which is a common feature of autoimmune skin conditions.
Go see a dermatologist.
A few years ago I would get patches on the back of my hand that would itch and have tiny blisters. They were persistent and over the counter ointments weren’t helping. Finally went to a dermatologist when they got unbearable. The first one I went to prescribed an ointment that sorta worked, but not that great. Ended up going to a second dermatologist when I found out the first one was an anti-vaxxer.
The second one was on top of his game. He straight up said the first ointment wasn’t a good one to use and prescribed something much better. It knocked out the spots and itchiness after a week or two. I’ve had a couple of minor flair ups since, but the ointment eliminates it pretty quick. Haven’t had any problems for at least a year.
If you can, go see a dermatologist.
So, what was it? I get a steroid cream (triamcinolone acetonide 0.1%) but I’m curious if there’s an alternative. I try to use the steroid as little as possible, only applying it when it gets particularly bad.
Yeah, that was my second prescription. The first one was clobetasol propionate which you are only supposed to use two weeks on, two weeks off. It didn’t work very well.
Edit: for over the counter I use Eucerin eczema relief. I also have a jar of CeraVe, but I haven’t used that in a while. I only have to use them occasionally.
What are you doing with that finger? Not joking.
Has it up the arse.
Sounds like dyshidrotic eczema. A primary care provider should be able to diagnose that (rather than needing to see a dermatologist necessarily). Can be treated with steroid creams.
Are your hands often wet? It could be athletes foot or another fungus.
Maybe… Can athlete’s foot last for longer than a year without spreading to a different part of the body?
Yes. I have been dealing with it for a long time myself and thankfully it hasn’t spread. I can’t comment on if that’s what you are dealing with or not however.
It tends to stay in places that are wet. If you wear gloves a lot and your hands are wet a lot it could just live on your hands. It wouldn’t hurt to try Canesten cream on your hands.
could be anything, even allergies or an infection.
Go see a doctor. They could be warts, there are many types of warts and some get very itchy. Or it could be chillblains. Or it could be something else. And you can have an infection on top if you’ve scratched it often. But I am not a doctor. Next time go for a checkup, which might be a good idea if you haven’t for the past two years, mention it. Take photos of the finger if it’s a thing that comes and goes.
DONT. ASK. STRANGERS. ON. THE. INTERNET. FOR. MEDICAL. ADVICE. SEE. AN. ACTUAL. DOCTOR…
You should see a dermatologist for an accurate diagnosis. They are far more knowledgeable than us and can suggest treatments.
Thanks to this thread, I learned that I definitely have dyshidrosis. I gotta call a dermatologist now.
To be a little clearer, it’s dyshidrotic eczema.
One of many possibilities :
Scabies, also sometimes known as the seven-year itch, is a contagious human skin infestation by the tiny (0.2–0.45 mm) mite Sarcoptes scabiei, variety hominis. (…)
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/ScabiesI used to get these regularly on my fingers and heel of my palm for years.
Once I changed soap and shampoo away from my wife’s fancy stuff to normal, basic stuff, it’s all come right.
I’ll say it; could be HSV.
Did you put some sort of petroleum jelly like Vaseline on the hair follicle area of the finger? For me, if I do that, I can get backed up pores that create small “pimples”. If it is on the palm side then I don’t know. I learned also that I am allergic to Neosporin so it might be that if you have been re-applying it. If so, it won’t get better until you stop.
I’m assuming you’re not in a country where it’s easy to go to the clinic.
I’m not a doctor, but I’ve heard people with psoriasis or allergies describe similar things if that helps.
