Itchy skin folds

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charliegreywolf
Posts: 4
Joined: Wed Jul 29, 2015 8:56 am

by charliegreywolf on Wed Jan 13, 2016 5:43 pm

Itchy skin folds

I suffer almost continuously from itchy and smelly skin in my skin folds (I'm a large lady, and yes, its fat) especially under my stomach and groin areas but sometimes under my breasts. I clean the areas twice a day with baby wipes and it still recurs. I've tried Canesten which my doctor says shouldn't help but it does seem to, the doctor now suggests talcum powder (!?!?!?!?!) Apart from almost bathing in Canesten cream, is there anything else I can do? I feel I'm dirty and that other people can smell the odour coming from these areas, even though I clean.

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Justine Greenwood
Posts: 98
Joined: Mon Dec 29, 2014 5:41 pm

by Justine Greenwood on Mon Jan 18, 2016 5:02 pm

Re: Itchy skin folds

Hello Charliegreywolf,

Thank you for your post and for explaining your problem.

It sounds to me as though you could be suffering from a type of thrush infection caused by the candida yeast. It's also known as intertrigo and often appears on the skin.

I'm sure you'll be glad to know that this type of infection is usually not serious, however it concerns me that it is not going away. Usual treatment is with an antifungal cream, such as canestan which is why you find it works. However if the infection if not clearing, I would suggest you go back to the GP for further review.

There are things you can do yourself to try to prevent the infection coming back. The website patient.co.uk recommends:

•Keep areas likely to be affected as clean and dry as possible.
•Always dry well after washing, particularly in your groin, armpits and under large breasts. Some people use a hairdryer to dry these areas after washing to ensure they are dry before putting clothes on. (This is the same reasoning as using talcum powder as your GP has suggested. I would always recommend drying thoroughly after using your baby wipes too.)
•Wear light, loose, absorbent clothing and avoid wool and synthetic fibres. This helps to keep your skin from becoming too moist.
•Losing weight may help if obesity is contributing to this problem.
(http://patient.info/health/candidal-skin-infection)

If after you try these things, the infection recurs, please do make an appointment again with the GP. They need to find out why this infection keeps recurring.

I hope this helps,

Justine
Justine Greenwood
Learning and Development Pharmacist, Rowlands Pharmacy
http://www.talkhealthpartnership.com/on ... enwood.php

charliegreywolf
Posts: 4
Joined: Wed Jul 29, 2015 8:56 am

by charliegreywolf on Thu Jan 21, 2016 10:39 am

Re: Itchy skin folds

I'll definitely have to make an appointment, its ongoing and after googling intertrigo several months ago I've been doing the things you suggest but to no avail. The thing is now, to get the doctors to take it seriously enough to treat it instead of just saying wash more or use talc. Hmmmm... worth a try again anyway, thank you for your help.

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