Infectious mollusk is a dermatological disease Although it can affect anyone, it is especially common in childhood and is usually associated with the humid environment of swimming pools or locker rooms.
As with warts or papillomas, mollusks are caused by a virus It is not serious, but it is very easily spread in children with atopic skin or a somewhat weakened immune system.
What symptoms does molluscum infectious have?
It is a small skin lesion that may initially go unnoticed because it is similar to a flesh-colored granite, pearly appearance and vault shape.
With the passage of time it will grow and acquire another softer aspect with a wet and viscous center. On some occasions you can also see a reddened area around the mollusk that can bite, although by itself, Molluscum is an injury that does not usually itch or hurt.
Molluscs can occur alone or in groups and usually appear more frequently in the abdomen, extremities and neckThe friend of the pools that is easily spread
With the summer season at the doors, it’s good to know that Dermatological mollusks also love pool water, the floats, the "churros", the sleeves, the towels ... or any object that may be in contact with the child in and out of the water.
The contagion is very fast and simple and can occur in several ways:
Skin to skin contact: When the affected area touches another healthy skin but predisposed to infection
Contact with contaminated surfaces: If a child with mollusks on his skin uses any object to bathe or dries with a towel, the focus of contagion will be on everything that has come into contact with him.
Pool water: Swimming pools, locker rooms and public toilets are usually large sources of contagion
Self-contagion: Do not touch or scratch these lesions because in many cases the contagion occurs through autoinoculation, especially if the mollusk breaks off and bleeds.
Can we avoid contagion?
Virtually everyone comes into contact with this virus at some point without developing any lesions. But among children, contagion is much easier, especially in those with the immune system still immature or with atopic skin, tendency to dryness or dermatitis.
Avoiding contagion is really complicated, but we can take certain preventive measures:
Wash your hands thoroughly after using public restrooms and locker rooms as well as the use of booties or flip flops in this type of enclosures and swimming pools
Shower before and after swimming in the pool
Do not share towels or personal water objects with other children
If, despite the preventive measures, produce the contagion:
It is recommended that the affected child not share a bathtub with siblings or with other children.
After bathing, you should proceed to dry the skin gently, with light little touches, to avoid damaging any injuries
Do not touch the lesions to avoid contagion to other areas of the body
It is also recommended to suspend the extracurricular activities that are being carried out until the lesions have been eliminated.
Do not practice skin-to-skin contact sports with other children (for example, judo or karate) until the lesions have disappeared
How are infectious mollusks treated?
Molluscum tends to grow and evolve and when it has reached its peak it usually disappears on its own. The half-life of a molluscum contagiosum will depend on the individual but can go from three to 18 months, although being a chronic disease, new lesions may appear that, in any case, will disappear over time without leaving any type of scar.
There are pediatricians who advise eliminating them as soon as they appear to prevent the child from infecting other children or the virus spreading to other areas of the skin through autoinoculation.
The most used techniques To eliminate mollusks they are usually:
Cryotherapy by liquid nitrogen
Curettage: It is a superficial scraping done by the pediatrician in consultation with the help of a sharp ring or "teaspoon". It is usually done after applying a local anesthetic cream
Ointments and creams: They are longer treatments over time
ISotck photos
In Babies and More How to treat your child's warts, Summer comes and cumbersome plantar warts, The most frequent diseases in summer in children, Dermatitis and eczema: How to care for atopic skin in summer, Summer and children: prevents infections in the swimming pools
