What is Skin Calcification?
Skin calcification is a pathology that is accompanied by the deposition of excess salts in the skin.
Causes of Skin Calcification
Most often, this disease develops metastatically a second time, i.e., with excessive deposition of salts in the internal organs, they are able to enter the skin with blood flow and be deposited in large quantities. Most often in the body such foci – sources of salts are internal organs, especially the kidneys, bones, tumors of various tissues and organs. In other situations, as a result of metabolic disorders in the body, salts initially accumulate in the skin and in subcutaneous fat.
Symptoms of Skin Calcification
Signs of the disease
As a result of excessive salt deposition, multiple small nodules appear in the thickness of the skin. They are painless and dense to the touch, the skin above them is practically unchanged and has a normal color. In the future, skin nodes containing calcium can be opened on the surface of the skin, fistulas appear in their place, from which a mass of porridge consistency is constantly released. This causes the patient considerable concern. Skin calcification can be associated with many diseases. For example, with scleroderma, calcium is deposited in the thickness of the skin discs formed during this process, and the disease is also very common with dermatomyositis, atrophy of acrodermatitis, poikiloderma, and other skin pathologies. Deposits of calcium salts in the skin can take the form of small single grains, larger nodes. Less commonly, total calcification may be observed, covering all skin and underlying tissues. Calcification in most cases develops as a result of a violation of the conversion of calcium compounds in the body, women most often suffer, especially older age groups.
The most common locations for subcutaneous calcification nodules are areas of the hands, lateral surfaces of the fingers, areas of large joints, feet, and sometimes other areas of the skin. At the onset of the disease, the skin over the affected area is completely unchanged and has a normal color, then inflammatory processes develop in these places, as a result of which the skin turns red, and soreness when palpating nodules is determined. Then, by all indications, they begin to resemble skin tumors as oligogranulomas.
Calcification is a chronic, long-lasting disease. If there are a lot of subcutaneous calcareous nodules, then they can significantly impede mobility in the joints, sometimes the latter is completely absent. Complete immobility of the fingers of the hands, significant curvature of the spinal column, abnormalities of the pelvic shape, which is especially dangerous and unfavorable for expectant mothers, can also often develop mobility in the knee, hip and ankle joints. Most often, large joints and medium-sized joints are affected.
Diagnosis of Skin Calcification
Diagnosis is based on the clinical picture.
Skin Calcification Treatment
The only drugs that can lead to a fairly stable normalization of the condition and elimination of skin lesions are ammonium chloride and potassium iodide. However, these drugs used in too large dosages can lead to the development of poisoning and very serious complications. Therefore, they should be prescribed only by an experienced dermatologist with a careful selection of individual dosages. When large nodes appear on the skin, they have to be removed surgically. In cases of joint mobility disorders, therapeutic massage, paraffin and ozokerite applications, physical therapy, ultraviolet light, and radon baths are used. A diet is prescribed, which provides for the exclusion from the diet of all highly salty foods containing large amounts of calcium and its salts. Forecast. With common forms of pathology, when lesions cover very large areas of the skin, the prognosis is always unfavorable. Separately located single subcutaneous nodes can be treated using surgical methods.