Rash

Pauline <[email hidden]> writes

Quoted message said:

When I have walked in hot weather I get a red, blothchy rash that starts
just above my ankle and extends up my lower leg. Its hot and burns rather
than itches and fades and disappears over a few days. It makes no difference
what socks I wear or the height of them. Does anybody else experience this
or have any advice on prevention?

My lady friend had a bad case of that a week or two ago.

I checked that she was using mild detergents to wash her socks, etc, but
the only thing which cured it seemed to be time, and avoiding wearing
her leather boots and walking socks for about ten days.

I have had a slight problem with this myself in the past.
Roll on Autumn, I'd say... :-(
--
Gordon Harris

What a pain! And it doesn't always happen either. I was walking in France in
the year of the heat wave and nothing appeared then. Could it be an allergy
so some sort of grass or seed do you think? Its definitely not the socks or
boots as I wear them all year round with no ill effects.
Thanks
Pauline
"Gordon" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Pauline <[email hidden]> writes

Quoted message said:

When I have walked in hot weather I get a red, blothchy rash that starts
just above my ankle and extends up my lower leg. Its hot and burns rather
than itches and fades and disappears over a few days. It makes no

difference

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

what socks I wear or the height of them. Does anybody else experience

this

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

or have any advice on prevention?

My lady friend had a bad case of that a week or two ago.

I checked that she was using mild detergents to wash her socks, etc, but
the only thing which cured it seemed to be time, and avoiding wearing
her leather boots and walking socks for about ten days.

I have had a slight problem with this myself in the past.
Roll on Autumn, I'd say... :-(
--
Gordon Harris

Pauline <[email hidden]> writes

Quoted message said:

What a pain! And it doesn't always happen either. I was walking in France in
the year of the heat wave and nothing appeared then. Could it be an allergy
so some sort of grass or seed do you think? Its definitely not the socks or
boots as I wear them all year round with no ill effects.
Thanks
Pauline

I'm sure it's been discussed here before...

My worst rash occurred on a very hot day on a 9 miler round Eyam, and it
was extremely irritating and itchy. I did see some grass seed inside
my socks, but I don't know whether that had caused the rash or just
added to the discomfort.
--
Gordon Harris

On Mon, 22 Aug 2005 18:53:27 +0100, Gordon <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

My worst rash

My worst rash.....

No - perhaps this is not the most appropriate ng.
--
R
o
o
n
e
y

"I always knew the entire Green party were nutters" - Ken Livingstone

On 22/8/05 09:23, in article [email hidden],

Pauline said:

When I have walked in hot weather I get a red, blothchy rash that starts
just above my ankle and extends up my lower leg. Its hot and burns rather
than itches and fades and disappears over a few days. It makes no difference
what socks I wear or the height of them. Does anybody else experience this
or have any advice on prevention?

I've had this happen. I always thought that it was completely associated
with heat but it isn't. This hasn't happened to me for a year - same boots
and same socks!!

Actually, I think it has probably happened when I've been wearing brand new
Smartwool socks - but I can't swear that this is the case

--
Andy Howell
Birmingham, UK

To mail simply put back the dots ...

My wife had a terrible case of sock rash on her ankles recently, from
her lower ankles to the tops of her Thorlo socks. The rash lined up
perfectly with the area covered by the socks' elastic ribbing. And yes,
it was quite a hot day. She tried puting polypropylene liner socks
under her hiking socks in case she was reacting to detergents, fabric
dyes or something else in the fabric of the sock, but it made no
difference at all. We concluded that she was suffering from a type of
heat rash which was brought on by the combination of heat, sweat and
constrictive clothing. (She has also had similar rashes in other areas
such as under straps, etc., on hot days.) Your rash sounds exactly like
hers, except it sound like yours may have extended above the top of the
sock. I'm not sure what to say about that.

Incidentally, we came up with a solution. Since the strong elastic
ribbing in the ankles of the Thorlos seemed to be at the heart of the
problem, I simply snipped out and withdrew all of the elastic bands
(leaving a few wraps at the very top so the sock wouldn't unravel). It
was a laborious process, but the socks have a nice loose fit now and
the problem appears to be solved.

I'm not sure how this would work on other socks, but on the Thorlos it
wasn't too bad (except on the black pair, which took twice as long
because the elastic bands were the same color as the sock and thus were
very difficult to separate out). I used magnifying glasses, tweezers
and a tiny pair of scissors, but it was kind of fun. The fabric of the
socks was not harmed and the socks are still sound, but there is no
longer any elastic running through them.

You might want to inspect your socks and see if the ankles are a
particularly tight fit. Do they leave an impression in your skin after
you take them off? If so, then heat rash brought about by constrictive
clothing is a possibility to consider.

Dan

Thanks Dan but my socks are Bridgedale and don't constrict me at all. Did
your wife find any cream or lotion or anything that effectively dealt with
the synptoms. I wanted to walk again the next day but didn't because of the
rash.
Pauline
"Dan" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

My wife had a terrible case of sock rash on her ankles recently, from
her lower ankles to the tops of her Thorlo socks. The rash lined up
perfectly with the area covered by the socks' elastic ribbing. And yes,
it was quite a hot day. She tried puting polypropylene liner socks
under her hiking socks in case she was reacting to detergents, fabric
dyes or something else in the fabric of the sock, but it made no
difference at all. We concluded that she was suffering from a type of
heat rash which was brought on by the combination of heat, sweat and
constrictive clothing. (She has also had similar rashes in other areas
such as under straps, etc., on hot days.) Your rash sounds exactly like
hers, except it sound like yours may have extended above the top of the
sock. I'm not sure what to say about that.

Incidentally, we came up with a solution. Since the strong elastic
ribbing in the ankles of the Thorlos seemed to be at the heart of the
problem, I simply snipped out and withdrew all of the elastic bands
(leaving a few wraps at the very top so the sock wouldn't unravel). It
was a laborious process, but the socks have a nice loose fit now and
the problem appears to be solved.

I'm not sure how this would work on other socks, but on the Thorlos it
wasn't too bad (except on the black pair, which took twice as long
because the elastic bands were the same color as the sock and thus were
very difficult to separate out). I used magnifying glasses, tweezers
and a tiny pair of scissors, but it was kind of fun. The fabric of the
socks was not harmed and the socks are still sound, but there is no
longer any elastic running through them.

You might want to inspect your socks and see if the ankles are a
particularly tight fit. Do they leave an impression in your skin after
you take them off? If so, then heat rash brought about by constrictive
clothing is a possibility to consider.

Dan

Pauline said:

When I have walked in hot weather I get a red, blothchy rash that starts
just above my ankle and extends up my lower leg. Its hot and burns rather
than itches and fades and disappears over a few days. It makes no difference
what socks I wear or the height of them. Does anybody else experience this
or have any advice on prevention?

Are all your hiking socks of the same sort? I had this with many different
socks but all of them to some extent contained wool - I switched to thinner
cotton/poly socks and solved it.

Pauline said:

Thanks Dan but my socks are Bridgedale and don't constrict me at all. Did
your wife find any cream or lotion or anything that effectively dealt with
the synptoms. I wanted to walk again the next day but didn't because of the
rash.
Pauline

No, nothing seemed to help. The ointment she tried seemed to make it
worse. I think the best thing would to keep it dry. Anyway, after
several days it cleared up on its own.

Dan

Gordon said:

My worst rash occurred on a very hot day on a 9 miler round Eyam, and it
was extremely irritating and itchy.

Hmm - Eyam - sure it wasn't a touch of Black Death?

Jim Ford

Jim Ford <[email hidden]> writes

Quoted message said:

Gordon said:

My worst rash occurred on a very hot day on a 9 miler round Eyam, and
it was extremely irritating and itchy.

Hmm - Eyam - sure it wasn't a touch of Black Death?

Jim Ford

Ooo-err! We did linger at Mompasson's Well, and at the bookmaker's
place - Sir William Hill.
--
Gordon Harris

On Tue, 23 Aug 2005 19:51:58 +0100
in <news:[email hidden]>
Gordon <[email hidden]> wrote :
<snip>

Quoted message said:

Mompasson's Well

Is he? Send my best wishes.

--
He was a big fellow, and there were a few bad backs.
[Langdale & Ambleside MRT callout report]

Quoted message said:

My worst rash occurred on a very hot day on a 9 miler round Eyam, and it
was extremely irritating and itchy. I did see some grass seed inside
my socks, but I don't know whether that had caused the rash or just
added to the discomfort.

Has the Bubonic Plague resurfaced again?

Bootlaces <[email hidden]> writes

Quoted message said:

On Tue, 23 Aug 2005 19:51:58 +0100
in <news:[email hidden]>
Gordon <[email hidden]> wrote :
<snip>

Quoted message said:

Mompasson's Well

Is he? Send my best wishes.

I must apostrophise for that s'lip.
--
Gordon Harris

I have had something similar Pauline and I was never sure if it was
related to detergents, heat or whatever....all I do know is that when I
fold my socks back over my boots at the top - it stopped and never
returned....maybe that suggests heat or constriction but would think
that it's more a combination of a few different things.

I have never sufferend with anything like it since.

Hope that helps.

Thanks Jim. Not sure if it helps or not. I did a 10 mile walk last Monday in
warm weather and had an attack. It faded so I did another 10 miler on
Saturday but rolled my socks down as far as I could as, like you, I
suspected they were the cause. I still got the rash and this time on both
legs wheras on the Monday it had only affected one. Now I'm not sure nd as I
said before, if it's the socks why doesn't the rash appear on my feet (socks
are always damp with sweat after walking in warm weather) and why doesn't it
occur every time I walk in warm conditions? I have found this on the web:-
http://www.medhelp.org/forums/dermatology/messages/33027.html
I will try taking clatytin before I walk as Dr Rockoff suggests but it seems
we are not suffering alone
Smile on and keep walking

"JimP" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I have had something similar Pauline and I was never sure if it was
related to detergents, heat or whatever....all I do know is that when I
fold my socks back over my boots at the top - it stopped and never
returned....maybe that suggests heat or constriction but would think
that it's more a combination of a few different things.

I have never sufferend with anything like it since.

Hope that helps.

Does the rash typically start beneath your sock, and then spread
upwards?

I would say so yes, but it doesn't appear anywhere wher my boots are which
is strange

"Dan" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Does the rash typically start beneath your sock, and then spread
upwards?

Pauline said:

I would say so yes, but it doesn't appear anywhere wher my boots are which
is strange

My wife's rash also began under her sock just above the top of boot.
She has had it several times, but the last time was the absolute worst.
It was a particularly hot day and a long hike. The boot seemed to have
nothing to do with it, but this made a kind of sense to us since the
boot does not exert a steady encircling pressure on the ankle and would
not seem to impede the circulation that much. Plus, ankles are slender
and there is less tissue down there to swell up, unlike calves and
legs.

At this point we hope that we have finally solved it. The extra
pressure from the sock's elastic, which is only located in the sock's
ankle region above the top of the boot, seemed to be the trigger. So
far, no recurrences!

If your rash also starts at the sock, it might be pressure-related
(along with the heat and increased sweating, of course). I can imagine
a scenario where an area of increased pressure moves up your leg as the
condition develops, kind of like a self-reinforcing cascade. I'm just
guessing here, but if you had a touch of edema in your calves it might
predispose you to this sort of thing. The problem might even be related
to high salt intake, the use of vasoconstrictors such as caffeine, or
some underlying medical condition. Actually, I'm just totally guessing
at this point, and I think the best thing would be for you to consult
with a dermatologist. And then let us know!