Diagnosis
The diagnosis of a skin rash caused by heat is made by a general practitioner or dermatologist. A detailed medical history and an assessment of the rash itself is often sufficient to make a diagnosis. Especially in newborns there are very typical sites for a skin rash due to heat.
In most cases, the affected area is covered by clothing and heated. Sweat production is often also increased at this site. In adults, these are hard-to-reach body folds, for example the armpits, groin, buttocks or abdomen.
Since a rash can have many other causes, a medical history must be taken to rule out whether there are any drug or food intolerances. To definitively confirm the suspicion, the doctor may also take a skin biopsy and then examine the skin under a microscope. In this way, the individual inflammations of the sweat gland ducts can be precisely identified. As a rule, however, a superficial inspection of the skin rash using heat is sufficient for diagnosis.
Associated symptoms
The accompanying symptoms of a skin rash caused by heat are numerous. The rash itself manifests itself in red patches of a certain clearly or blurred skin area. The redness and accompanying symptoms appear sudden and acute.
In the case of miliaria, small nodules, also known as “papules”, form over the rash in a short period of time. The nodules continue to develop into blisters filled with a clear or milky liquid. This usually causes a burning or itching sensation.
In the rare form of hives caused by heat, so-called wheals form in addition to the redness of the skin. This is a thickening of the skin that is caused by an allergy-like reaction. The hives itch a lot, but they disappear within a few days and reappear elsewhere.
The rash, which is caused by heat, begins to itch within a few days. The acute redness alone does not cause itching, but the subsequent papules or wheals do. These are accumulations of fluid in superficial layers of the skin.Despite the itching, the papules and wheals should not be scratched, as otherwise there is a risk of infection of the skin. Scratching them open damages the skin and cannot guarantee its normal barrier function, allowing pathogenic germs to penetrate.
