What Causes Red Blotches On The Arms?

Posted on Fri, 5 May 2017

Question: I have red blotches on both arms from the wrists up to the elbows. They come & go. My family physician said it is usually caused by taking a blood thinner. I do not take any. Then it is chalked up to "old age."
If I run up against a wall it may tear the skin some and that area bleeds. I use an antiseptic cream and a band-aid then it heals Also have a brown area under these blood marks that never goes away. Please advise.

Answered by Dr. Pavan Kumar Gupta (50 minutes later)

Brief answer.....seems to be due to old age but better to get investigated to rule out any underlying disorder
Detailed answer.....
Hello,
Thanks for the query.
I have read your query and understand your concern.
Such type of bleeding under skin is called bruises and very common phenomenon in old age specially females.
This happens because of loss of fat layer under the skin resulting in loss of cushion effect.
This makes your blood vessels very vulnerable to break with just a little trauma.
However there are other reasons also and it is better to have a look into these by getting investigated.
These reasons can be....
Use of blood thinners
Could be bleeding or clotting disorders like haemophilia or thrombocytopenia etc
Some liver disorders
Sometimes deficiency of VIT V12,VIT C,VIT K,folic acid etc.
Very rarely may be due to certain cancers like leukaemia.
As far as I feel,your problem is just age related and a normal thing,however it would be prudent to get investigated on the lines as advised above,just to remove doubts and have peace of mind.
I hope it helps,however you are most welcome to revert to me for any further query.
Best of luck
Thanks

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Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Kampana