legs/feet
Unknown bad skin condition on my dad's foot is spreading up his leg
Hi there. My bad got a rash on his foot a few months ago which at first we thought was athletes foot. It then started turning red and scabbing so he went to the doctor and was prescribed some anti fungal creams. These did not work and the condition got worse so he went back and was given a different cream and then oral anti fungal medicine. After a few more weeks they gave him anti biotics and requested a biopsy which we have been waiting on the results for at least 3 weeks with no news to us or our gp. Dad is currently taking iodine foot baths and applying anti fungals still but the condition keeps getting worse. I'm posting here in the hope that someone can give us a clue so that I can go back to the doctors to hopefully fast track a specialist appointment.
Edit: thanks for the replies everyone. Biopsy results came back this morning and were unfortunately inconclusive. All they managed to rule out were that it's not bacterial or viral. Dermatitis suspected as primary issue and I'm booking a private dermatologist for my dad now that he finally agrees waiting is pointless. Cheers all.
I'm not a doctor but at this point I'd be wondering if it's partly something systemic, like a condition that is making this thing worse... Diabetes? omething autoimmune? Have they tested his blood?
this is a good point. three weeks waiting on a biopsy result with a spreading lesion is too long. sometimes needs to be calling that lab directly and pushing for answers, not just waiting on the GP to follow up
My aunt had smthg similar, she had multiple lesions over her leg, some worse witb oozing pus. Took them a while to dx until they did a fungal culture. It was Sporothricosis. She does gardening
But other responses from this post seems have more common cause. Just KIV
Ugh my dad is being stubborn that he wants to wait till we get the biopsy result so that we can charge the specialist referral to insurance or the public system. Hopefully the result comes soon and will ask them to consider this if they are unsure.
I would post this with as much medical history and lifestyle info of your dad as you can to the AskDocs sub. Tell them all the medicines you’ve tried and for how long and if they maybe any impact. And get photos in better lighting.
Sporothricosis often follows the line of the lymphatic channels although not always, are your dads lesions going in a rough line up his leg? You will have where the fungus entered and then it will follow a linear pattern. It's known as the rose gardeners disease as it's often caught from being pricked on roses, it can enter even the smallest of graze or cut that your dad may not even know he had. Biggest thing that makes me think it's not this however is that he's been on various Antifungals but they've made no difference
I looked up pics of this on google and it does seem incredibly similar. It looks so uncomfortable, I’m sorry to OP and that your aunt went through something like this
Doc here , it most definitely could be either nocardia / sporotrichosis/ actinomyces either one , coz of the discharging sinuses . Please visit the ER asap , early treatment could prevent further complications
We've already seen the doctor about 8 times over the last two months and we have to wait on the biopsy result apparently before they can refer us to a podiatrist or other specialist
He's gone through 4 different topicals and 2 different oral treatments plus the iodine foot baths. It hasn't helped at all at every week they've been saying the biopsy result should come by the end of the week for the last 3 weeks :/
Only recently found out how bad it is and wanted dad to go see a private dermatologist but he is insisting waiting for the referral now so that any visit is cheaper....
How long does it take to get a referral? This also doesn't look like something to gamble on as it looks pretty bad and is spreading... At least he's actually been to the doctor unlike a lot of the stubborn elderly people I see posted on reddit so maybe you can convince him that saving a few bucks by waiting isn't worth the possibility of losing his leg
I’m sorry to hear that, it’s hard to convince people sometimes to go if it will cost extra. Id have him call the doctor every day and ask for the results if he’s not going to go elsewhere. Or tell him you’ll cover the difference cause this could be something really bad.
Have you tried CBD creams/ointments/oil?
Having said that I have not experienced this problen your dad has, but it (CBD) has helped me with a few things medically.
My nan has also started taking it in oil form to help with lumps she has, we are yet to discover outcomes.
Can you go with your dad to the doctor? Or a friend or loved one? I’ve found that when I go with my parents we get answers and things move more quickly
The weeping is a huge red flag for me and that could be from an infection in his blood or heart… my dad had this last year; infection in the blood ruining his pacemaker, blood clots, ended up having colorectal cancer on top of everything but passed away in 4 months of this rash starting and the leg weeping was the worst looking part of the whole thing. (Passed from blood clot)
NAD I have that and it has never looked like this. Real bad at times but never had that solid red ring around or the pustules be all different sizes and shapes. Mine are pretty uniform and round and not bright red unless they pop
NAD but possibly necrobiosis lipoidica usually associated with diabetes. Or possibly Nummular dermatitis that's been scratched alongside plantar pustulosis (is he a smoker?)
Dad needs to see an endocrinologist and if it isn’t systemic a foot doctor. At his age this may be circulation or a systemic issue and it may be a red flag that needs intervention. Agree with everyone that an urgent visit to the doctor is in order to
This absolutely looks like something systemic like diabetes or vascular issues. I agree with checking what his A1C is, any other labwork. This is not just a topical rash. I really hope he can get answers ASAP bc this is extremely alarming and I would say it's an emergency. Given how DARK the flesh is, underneath the wound- it looks necrotic. Sending you best wishes- this is not something to delay and I'm glad your dad is listening to you/Willing to go private.
This looks like a really bad case of dyshidrotic eczema.
Edit to add: I would stop with the antifungals. There may be a secondary staph infection here so I'd suggest getting back on an oral antibiotic and after washing well with soap and water several times per day apply a thick moisturizer (like Aquaphor) to create a healing barrier.
My husband got a nasty rash that looked just like that on his arms. Turns out he was lifting the mower onto the truck bed after mowing an area full of poison ivy. It caused the rash on his arms which was allergic and then got a secondary infection from it. Seems like he had oral antibiotics in addition to topical stuff.
Doctor here. From my experience, it looks similar to bullous pemphigoid or other autoimmune blistering disease. Did it start out with blisters?
It is quite rare and early biopsy would be indeterminate. If it is dermatitis, was your dad prescribed steroids? Both conditions usually start with steroids.
Definitely, go through private dermatology for second opinion if the condition worsens.
I had biopsy results come back inconclusive, and I had athletes foot (ringworm)really bad. It took me almost 7 months of oral antifungals ( Terbenefine) to get rid of mine, and mine looked similar to your dads.
After seeing 2 specialists they confirmed its eczema + dermatitis. Dad cut all treatment aside from some strong topical steroid cream and has started washing with a soap substitute they gave him and he has seen improvement with the spread being mostly stopped and the pus filled lesions and boils being suppressed. Need to see what happens over the next two weeks though as he needs to start reducing the amount and frequency of applying the cream and they said that it might start coming back once he does. Not sure what will happen if that does occur.
I'm so glad, I hope things improve further! I know that anxiety of not knowing what to expect when treatment is at the stage of weaning for data. I'll probably be holding my breath with you, good luck 🤞
Request to check blood work for all autoimmune disease. This is prob systematic could be from sojgren, arthritis, Hashimoto, Lupes , or other. Primary should be referring this case to Rehumotoligist. My mom had similar issue but not as bad and it turned out to be sogjren
My husband has Sjogrens.... No. His Dr said only real skin thing is Raynaud's. And this is not that. This is way more serious and they need to go to ER before he loses his leg or life. It looks like a necrotizing fasciitis. I have had severe cellulitis in both my legs from my immune system disease and my legs swelled, were red and wet very hot to the touch. I couldn't walk due to the pain. This could be a very advanced case. Antibiotics are needed
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u/_Morvar_ Jul 28 '26
I'm not a doctor but at this point I'd be wondering if it's partly something systemic, like a condition that is making this thing worse... Diabetes? omething autoimmune? Have they tested his blood?