[Anonymous]

#1128091

i thought a skin rash or discoloration WAS a syptom? My mother had horribly swollen legs, she would push wiht her finger and the skin would stay in. Her swollen legs were the first real indication that we had that something was really wrong. I am not an expert but that was my experience.

[Anonymous]

#1039609

Hello and Welcome.

You need to ask your doctor if it may be a condition called pretibial maxademia. It is a rash like condition that normally happens on the shin bone area. It is an autoimmune disease related to Graves’ that attacks the subdural skin and makes it swell and hold water etc.

It can be treated with a steroid cream in some cases. Suggest a trip to the dermatologist. They are familiar with the disease and can help you out.

I have it on both shins. Most of the time it doesn’t bother me. Sometimes I want to take a wire brush to my legs to stop the insane itching.

Use the search engine to find more posts on the subject. There are many.

We are only a click away.

Jake
On-line Facilitator

[Anonymous]

#1128092

There is a problem, associated with Graves, that occurs on the shins of the legs. It is called “pretibial myxedema”. What you have described does not sound PRECISELY like PM, but it might be a variation on the theme, and your best bet might be to check with a dermatologist, if only to rule it out. P.M. is a response of the skin on the lower legs to the antithyroid antibodies. It only occurs in approximately one percent of Graves’ patients, so that makes it very rare. It’s “classic” presentation is the formation of thickened areas of skin, raised, bumpy, that somewhat resemble the rind of an orange. These can appear everywhere on the lower shins, or they can occur in sporadic “spots”. But depending upon where the thickening areas occur, the legs can sometimes just appear swollen. It isn’t a “rash”, per se, but some people start out by describing a rash. And in the information my dermatologist gave me on the problem, swelling WAS listed as a possibility.

Bobbi — NGDF Asst. Online Facilitator
Bobbi@ngdf.org

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