What is Prickly Heat Rash?

Prickly heat rash is a skin irratation that comes into view on the skin due to excessive sweating, especially in the warmer months.   It is caused by sweat trapped below the skin.

When the sweat is blocked from the skin’s surface, it cannot escape causing blood toxins in that location to increase.  This reason the pores get plugged is due to dead skin cells or bacteria such as Staphylococcus epidermidis, a common bacterium that occurs on the skin which is associated with acne. How this occurs in not widely knows but what is known is that it always happens during prolonged periods of sweating.  This can be environmental (hot weather, high humidity) and/or physiological (exertion, workouts, working outdoors).

Prevent Prickly Heat Rash by Stopping Excessive Sweating – Methods Reviewed Here

This rash is also known as heat rash, heat rashes or sweat rashes. In medical terminology, prickly heat is called malaria rubra or simply malaria.
Prickly heat happens in persons in all age groups, but it is seen much more often in children and infants.  This is because their sweat glands are not fully developed.  Also, this situation is seen much more commonly in the areas of tropical temperatures and where humidity levels are high.

The usual indications of prickly heat is tiny eruptions on the skin which are usually grainy in composition.  They could be red or they could even be just a shade darker than the color of the person’s skin.  These bumps always itch and are also accompanied by a prickly burning ’pins-and-needles’ sensation.

These outbreaks may simultaneously occur in several of areas on the sufferer’s body.  The most common locations are the face, neck, under the breasts, and around the scrotum.  Other areas less frequently affected are skin folds, areas of the body that rub against other skin or clothing such as the chest, back and stomach, etc.  A related and sometimes simultaneous condition is folliculitis.  This occurs when hair follicles become plugged with foreign matter, resulting in inflammation much like what occurs in prickly heat rash.

For children, prickly heat is always very discomforting due to the associated pain and itching that accompanies the flare-up.  In addition, there is always a chance of a severe infection once the prickly heat has taken place.

Also See Home Remedies and How to Prevent Prickly Heat Rash