When Covid-19 gets under your skin...

Skin manifestations are emerging in the coronavirus pandemic. Shahnaz Husain offers some tips to counter these

We all know that Covid-19 is a disease that affects the upper respiratory tract, but the passage of time has shown that it can also affect other organs and parts of the body. One of these is our skin especially post-Covid as the skin remains sensitive for more than two months in many cases.

First of all, even before suffering from the virus, washing hands and using sanitisers have caused several skin issues like making the skin on the hands really dry, even leading to flaking and peeling of the skin. The high alcohol content in hand sanitisers can cause excessive dryness. Even nails become dry and brittle, breaking or chipping easily. So, along with protecting ourselves from coronavirus, we also need to protect our hands. Massage a cream daily on the hands, nails and the skin around the nails. Massage the hands at night also.

For dryness of the hands, add one teaspoon of pure glycerine to 50 ml rose water. Apply on the hands and leave on for half an hour. Then, wash it off with plain water.

The constant wearing of masks can lead to skin irritation due to the collection of stale air, carbon dioxide, even saliva and mucous inside the masks. It can even lead to a kind of dermatitis, which needs medical attention.

Yet another problem is that the mask traps oil and sweat deposits from the skin which can lead to an acne condition. Cotton material is considered to be best for masks, as it allows proper ventilation and traps less moisture from breathing and sweating. The mask should also fit properly so that it provides adequate protection and should not be too tight.

It has also been seen that suffering from coronavirus itself leads to some skin problems because the virus actually comes into contact with the skin
and the mucous membrane.

This has given rise to skin problems like skin irritation, rashes, blisters, urticaria and even scaly papules. Some of the rashes were itchy and even painful. Such symptoms and inflammation can appear on the arms, neck, legs, feet, or any part of the body.

Lack of oxygen flow can also lead to discoloured skin or even red and purple inflamed patches on the skin, toes and around the nails. In some cases, there have been skin infections like eczema.

There have also been cases of water blisters or small fluid-filled blisters that may often appear on the hands. Some have also suffered from red and blue vein-like patterns on the skin, or with tiny bruises, known as purpura. Some skin symptoms appear soon after infection, while others arise later when the virus is more severe. Researchers are also saying what causes these skin conditions may be “the body’s immune response to the virus.”

As far as treatment for such conditions is concerned, one has to consult a doctor or a dermatologist.

(The author is a beauty expert.)