Can COVID-19 be recognized by the appearance of the skin? Purple spots, younger patients and other discoveries by Spanish dermatologists.

Research in Spain, also conducted on patients infected with coronavirus, revealed five different skin conditions associated with contraction of the COVID-19 virus, independent reports.

Spanish dermatologists examined skin changes in 375 patients, including patients with coronavirus, and almost all patients could be classified into five observed skin conditions.

Nineteen percent of cases had symptoms similar to injuries to the hands and feet, which were described as “acral areas of erythema-edema with vesicles and pustules.” The study indicates that symptoms manifested in the form of purple spots as a result of bleeding from the skin, and were seen more frequently in younger patients and milder forms of the virus.

The study also found “vesicular eruptions” or small blisters in 9% of cases, first seen in the chest area, in middle-aged patients, and on median clinical imaging.

Symptoms of a “urticarial injury”, such as a nettle rash, or pink circles around the body were seen in 19% of cases.

Livedo reticularis, which occurs in the form of net or ring spots caused by impaired blood circulation, occurred in 6% of cases, while in 47% of cases, symptoms of “different types of eruption”.

However, the authors of the scientific study cautioned that rashes or hives lesions are common in various diseases and cannot be completely attributed to coronavirus symptoms. They also urged the public not to make their own diagnosis of skin changes without consulting a doctor.