Treatments Your Provider May Prescribe
Although most people have the classic form of pityriasis rosea, some individuals develop a form of pityriasis rosea with unusual (atypical) features. These atypical types of pityriasis rosea may be more difficult to diagnose and may require a skin biopsy.
The procedure involves:
- Numbing the skin with an injectable anesthetic.
- Sampling a small piece of skin by using a flexible razor blade, a scalpel, or a tiny cookie cutter (called a "punch biopsy"). If a punch biopsy is taken, a stitch (suture) or two may be placed and will need to be removed 6–14 days later.
- Having the skin sample examined under the microscope by a specially trained physician (dermatopathologist).
In addition, your physician may want to do blood tests for other medical conditions.
Because pityriasis rosea is benign and self-limited, no treatment is required. However, some people with pityriasis rosea have mild-to-severe itching, and your physician may suggest:
- Moisturizing creams or lotions
- Oatmeal baths
- Topical menthol-phenol lotions
- Topical corticosteroid (cortisone) creams or lotions
- Oral antihistamine pills
- Ultraviolet light treatments
- Oral corticosteroid pills (if the pityriasis rosea is very severe)
Self-Care Guidelines
