Pityriasis rosea

Question 1

what is it?

Answer 1

an acute, self-limiting rash which tends to affect young adults

Question 2

who?

Answer 2

young adults.

Question 3

cause

Answer 3

not fully understood but is thought that herpes hominis virus 7 (HHV-7) may play a role.

Question 4

features

Answer 4

in the majority of patients there is no prodrome, but a minority may give a history of a recent viral infection

herald patch (usually on trunk)

followed by erythematous, oval, scaly patches which follow a characteristic distribution with the longitudinal diameters of the oval lesions running parallel to the line of Langer.

This may produce a ‘fir-tree’ appearance

Question 5

features

Answer 5

in the majority of patients there is no prodrome, but a minority may give a history of a recent viral infection

herald patch (usually on trunk)

followed by erythematous, oval, scaly patches which follow a characteristic distribution with the longitudinal diameters of the oval lesions running parallel to the line of Langer.

This may produce a ‘fir-tree’ appearance

Question 6

Mx

Answer 6

self limiting

Question 7

how long is it there for?

Answer 7

6-12 weeks