Blisters

What are blisters?

A blister, which doctors also call a “vesicle,” is an area of skin that is raised and filled with fluid. If you’ve ever worn shoes that don’t fit right for too long, you’ve probably had blisters.

When friction between your skin and the shoe causes layers of skin to separate and fill with fluid, this is a common cause of blisters.

Blisters can be annoying, painful, or just plain unpleasant. But most of the time, they don’t mean anything serious is wrong and will go away on their own. If your skin ever blisters for no clear reason, you should see a doctor to find out what’s wrong.

Conditions that cause blisters

Blisters can be caused by friction, an infection, or, in rare cases, a skin condition. Here are 16 things that could cause blisters.

Beware: There are violent images ahead.

Cold sore

• Red, painful blisters filled with fluid that form near the mouth and lips
• Often, the affected area will itch or burn before the sore can be seen.
• Mild flu-like symptoms, like a low fever, body aches, and swollen lymph nodes, may also be present during an outbreak.

Herpes simplex

Oral and genital sores are caused by the viruses HSV-1 and HSV-2.

• These painful blisters can be on their own or in groups. They leak clear yellow fluid and then harden.
• Mild flu-like symptoms like fever, tiredness, swollen lymph nodes, headache, body aches, and less appetite are also signs.
• Blisters can come back due to stress, menstruation, illness, or being in the sun.

Genital herpes

• The HSV-2 and HSV-1 viruses cause this sexually transmitted disease (STD).
• It makes painful blisters (bumps filled with fluid) called herpetic sores that can break open and leak fluid.
• Before blisters show up, the area that is infected often starts to itch or tingle.
• Some of the signs of the disease are swollen lymph nodes, a mild fever, a headache, and body aches.

Impetigo

• Often seen in babies and kids
• Rash usually happens around the mouth, nose, and chin.
• Itchy rash and blisters filled with fluid that are easy to pop and form a honey-colored crust.

Burns

This is what doctors call a medical emergency. Care may be needed right away.

• The size and depth of a burn are both used to rate how bad it is.
• First-degree burns cause minor swelling and red, dry, sensitive skin that turns white when pressed. Second-degree burns cause very painful, clear, weeping blisters and red or patchy skin.
• Third-degree burns are white or dark brown or tan, look leathery, and hurt little or not at all when touched.

Contact dermatitis

• hours to days after being exposed to an allergen
• Rash has clear edges and shows up where the irritating substance touched your skin.
• Skin is red, itchy, flaky, or raw.
• Sores that bleed, leak, or get crusty

Stomatitis

• Stomatitis is a sore or inflammation on the lips or inside of the mouth that can be caused by an infection, stress, injury, sensitivity, or another disease.
• Herpes stomatitis, also called a cold sore, and aphthous stomatitis, also called a canker sore, are the two most common types of stomatitis.
• Herpes stomatitis causes fever, body aches, swollen lymph nodes, and painful blisters that pop and bleed on the lips or in the mouth.
• With aphthous stomatitis, ulcers are round or oval with a red, inflamed edge and a yellow or white centre.

Frostbite

This is what doctors call a medical emergency. Care may be needed right away.

• Frostbite happens when a body part is hurt by extreme cold.
• Fingers, toes, nose, ears, cheeks, and chin are common places where frostbite can happen.
• Symptoms include tingling, numb, white or yellow, waxy or hard skin.
• Severe frostbite causes the skin to turn black, lose all feeling, and form blisters that are filled with fluid or blood.

Shingles

• Even if there are no blisters, the rash is very painful and may burn, tingle, or itch.
• Rash made up of groups of fluid-filled blisters that easily break and leak fluid.
• Rash usually shows up in a stripe pattern on the torso, but it can also happen on other parts of the body, like the face.
• Rash might come with a low fever, chills, a headache, or tiredness.

Dyshidrotic eczema

• With this skin condition, blisters on the palms of the hands or the bottoms of the feet that itch start to form.
• No one knows what causes this, but it could be related to allergies like hay fever.
• Hands and feet can get itchy skin.
• Blisters that are full of fluid show up on the fingers, toes, hands, or feet.
• Other signs are dry, red, scaly skin with deep cracks.

Pemphigoid

• Pemphigoid is a rare immune system disorder that causes skin rashes and blisters on the legs, arms, mucous membranes, and abdomen. It is caused by a problem with the immune system.
• There are different kinds of pemphigoid depending on where and when the blisters show up.
• Usually, a red rash shows up before the blisters.
• The blisters are thick and big, and they are full of fluid that is usually clear but sometimes has blood in it.
• Around the blisters, the skin may look normal, a little red, or even dark.
• When a blister breaks, it usually hurts and is sensitive.

Pemphigus vulgaris

• Pemphigus vulgaris is a rare autoimmune disease
• It affects the skin and mucous membranes of the mouth, throat, nose, eyes, genitalia, anus, and lungs.
• There are painful, itchy blisters on the skin that are easy to break and bleed from.
• Sores in the mouth and throat can make it painful to eat and swallow.

Allergic eczema

• May resemble a burn
• Often found on hands and forearms
• Skin is itchy, red, scaly, or raw
• Blisters that weep, ooze, or become crusty

Chickenpox

• All over the body are groups of itchy, red, fluid-filled blisters in different stages of healing.
• Rash causes fever, sore throat, body aches, and loss of appetite.
• Until all the blisters have crusted over, it can spread.

Erysipelas

• This is a skin infection caused by bacteria in the top layer of skin.
• Most of the time, the group A Streptococcus bacterium is to blame.
• Symptoms include fever, chills, a general feeling of being sick, a red, swollen, and painful area of skin with a raised edge, blisters on the affected area, and swollen glands.

Dermatitis herpetiformis

• Dermatitis herpetiformis is a rash on the elbows, knees, scalp, back, and buttocks that makes the skin itch, blister, and burn.
• It is a disorder caused by gluten that is linked to celiac disease.
• Symptoms include bumps that are very itchy and look like pimples filled with clear fluid. These bumps form and heal in cycles.
• If you don’t eat gluten, you can control your symptoms.

Causes of blisters

There are many short-term things that can cause blisters. When something rubs against your skin for a long time, this is called friction. This most often happens on the hands and feet.

• Contact dermatitis cause blisters as well. This is a skin reaction to allergens, like poison ivy, latex, or adhesives, or irritants, like chemicals or pesticides. It can make your skin red, swollen, and blister.
• Burns, if it’s bad enough, it can cause blisters. This includes sunburns, burns from heat, and burns from chemicals.
• Allergic eczema is a skin condition that can cause blisters and is caused or made worse by allergens. A different kind of eczema, dyshidrotic eczema, blistering, but no one knows what causes it and it tends to come and go.
• Frostbite is less common, but skin that has been exposed to very cold weather for a long time can get blisters.

Blistering can also be a sign of some types of infections, such as:

• Impetigo, Blisters can be caused by a bacterial infection of the skin, which can happen to both children and adults.
• Chickenpox, When a virus causes an infection, itchy spots and often blisters show up on the skin.
• Herpes zoster, which is also called shingles, is caused by the same virus that causes chickenpox. Some people get the virus again later in life, which causes a rash with fluid-filled bumps that can break open.
• Herpes this can cause cold sores, which can lead to blistering.
• Stomatitisis a sore inside the mouth that herpes simplex 1 can cause.
• Genital herpes can also cause blisters in the area around the genitalia.
• Erysipelas is an infection caused by a group of bacteria called Streptococcus that shows up as blisters on the skin.

blisters are sometimes caused by something wrong with the skin. Many of these rare conditions don’t know what causes them. Some skin problems that can lead to blisters are:

• porphyrias
• pemphigus
• pemphigoid
• dermatitis herpetiformis
• epidermolysis bullosa

Treatment for blisters

Most blisters don’t need to be treated. If you leave them alone, they will go away on their own, and the top layers of skin will keep them from getting sick.

If you know what caused your blister, you might be able to cover it with a bandage to keep it from getting worse. The fluids will eventually leak back into the tissue, and the blister will go away.

You shouldn’t pop a blister unless it hurts a lot, because the skin over the fluid keeps you from getting sick. Blisters caused by friction, allergens, or burns are short-term responses to things that irritate the skin. The best thing to do is to stay away from what is making your skin blister.

Blisters caused by infections also go away on their own, but you may need to treat them. If you think you might have an infection, you should see a doctor or nurse.

Your doctor may be able to give you something to help with the symptoms as well as medicine to treat the infection. If you know what caused the blisters, like exposure to a certain chemical or use of a certain drug, stop using that product.

Some blister-causing conditions, like pemphigus, can’t be cured. Your doctor can give you medicines that will help you deal with your symptoms. This could include steroid creams to treat rashes or antibiotics to treat skin infections.

Prognosis for blisters

Most of the time, blisters aren’t a sign of something that could kill you. Most will go away on their own, but they may hurt or make you feel bad until they do.

How bad your condition is will depend on how many blisters you have and whether or not they have broken or become infected. The outlook is good if you treat an infection that is causing blisters. How well treatments work for rare skin conditions will vary from case to case.

Prevention of friction blisters

For the most common blisters, which are caused by friction on your feet’s skin, you can take simple steps to avoid them:

• Always wear shoes that fit well and are comfortable.
• If you’re going to be walking for a long time, wear thick socks with a lot of padding to reduce friction.
• You might feel a blister starting to form as you walk. Stop and put a bandage on this area of skin to keep it from getting hurt any more.