DERMATOLOGY EXPERT FORUM
Shiny reddened area on back

Shiny reddened area on back

A little background.  2 years ago I was diagnosed with eosinophilic fasciitis.  I lost alot of range of movement and jumped around from doctor to doctor before it was diagnosed via biopsy. It affected my arms and legs but resolved after taking prednisone for 3 months.  I still have areas of scarring on my fascia that you can feel by touching the skin but I'm pretty much back to normal and I haven't had any more problems with it for almost 1 1/2 years.  
2 months ago I was looking in the mirror at my back and noticed what looked like a shiny rash.  It was faintly red and blanched when I pressed on it.  The area was firm too but not as if the skin was hard.  The skin felt normal to the touch but firm underneath.  It was more like the firmness I had with my EF.  I seem to remember feeling my back in that area in the past and feeling the firmness there as well but never noticed the redness till now.  It looks shiny when you look at it in certain lights too.  I'm wondering if it's morphea?  Or maybe a left over area of scarring from the EF that I haven't noticed till now since it was on my back?  I've watched it for the past 3 months and it hasn't grown or changed.  
I'm otherwise healthy and have no other medical problems that I know of.  I've become quite a hypochondriac since getting diagnosed with EF a few years back and bouncing around from doctor to doctor with most of them shrugging their shoulders and telling me they had no idea. I made it worse by jumping on the Internet and reading up on Scleroderma and how people die from it etc.  Also, most doctor's couldn't really tell me much about the EF other than it's "probably" benign.  Medical case reports were no help either because they blamed EF on pretty much everything under the sun. Maybe you can help me out with these two things.  As I said the Eosinophilic Fasciits has been gone for over a year and a half.  Can I relax with the fact that it probably won't return since it has been gone for this long?  The hardness I experienced from the EF went away fairly quickly after taking Prednisone and I'm pretty much back to normal.  Also, I'm providing a link to a picture of the area on my back.  What does it look like to you?  I'm hoping it is not morphea because I'm deathly afraid of scleroderma after reading all the stuff I have on it.  I'm only 32. I really need to stop stressing about this but I'm having a hard time finding answers.  Also, I have concerns about showing it to a doctor because they weren't much help when it came to the eosinophilic fasciitis and I'm afraid they'll just shrug their shoulders and tell me they don't know either.  Thanks for your time.
Here's the picture -
http://mywebpage.netscape.com/gd498/110-1013_IMG.JPG
Related Discussions
  • Morphea (4 replies):
    I have a rash (brown pigmentation)on my upper right arm....[more]
  • Rash (1 replies):
    Hi Dr. Sorry to keep bugging. But I have a couple of...[more]
  • Morphea (3 replies):
    Hi Doctor, I posted about a month or so ago. I had t...[more]
  • large round red patch (1 replies):
    I have had Scleroderma ( linear) since I was 5 yrs old a...[more]
  • Morphea (2 replies):
    I'am Pankaj from Ahmedabad, Gujarat, I have a 7 years ol...[more]
242489_tn?1210500813
Morphea is referred to as localized scleroderma, but actually has nothing to do with systemic scleroderma (the serious kind), and never turns into it, so you have nothing to worry about.

The only way to diagnose what you have is to see it and, if advisable, treat it.  You should see a skin specialist, who can do these things.

As near as I can tel from the picture, you have a patch of eczema, not morphea or something worse.  Best to check it out in person.

Best.

Dr. Rockoff
Blank
Continue discussion Blank
Go
MedHelp Health Answers
Submit
Blank
Weight Tracker
Reach your weight goal faster
Start Tracking Now
RSS Expert Activity
1741471_tn?1329053231
Blank
Love, endorphins and biochemistry. ... Blank
Feb 15 by Michael Gonzalez-WallaceBlank
1684282_tn?1311133646
Blank
Pregnancy and Addiction
Feb 14 by Julia M Aharonov, DOBlank
514494_tn?1329196433
Blank
What's the Best Type of Mattress?
Feb 13 by Adam Tanase, D.C.Blank