Have Red Splotches On Lower Leg And Is Tender. No Pain While Walking. Cause And Treatment?

Posted on Fri, 23 Aug 2013

Medically reviewed by Ask A Doctor - 24x7 Medical Review Team

Fri, 23 Aug 2013 Answered on

Tue, 10 Sep 2013 Last reviewed on

Question : I have red splotches on my lower left leg just to the inside of center. It is tender underneath and runs about 3/4 up the lower leg. I first noticed it yesterday and thought it got better over night, but it is back (or never left, I did not look at it this morning.) There is no pain while walking and I only noticed it because something touched my leg and it hurt.

Answered by Dr. Jorge Brenes-Salazar (1 hour later)

Brief Answer:
Probably fungal infection

Detailed Answer:
Dear patient,

Given the description of the symptoms, location and physical features, the first thing to think about is a fungal infection, either by tinea or candida, who love close, warm, and moist spaces like the groin. Usually, over the counter topical creams such as miconazole or clotrimazole are effective when treated for several days.

Yours truly,

Dr Brenes-Salazar MD
Mayo Clinic MN

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar

Follow up: Dr. Jorge Brenes-Salazar (35 minutes later)

The skin is red, but it is not irritated in any way as a fungal infection would do and it is between my ankle and knee, nowhere near the groin. The pain is coming from deeper in the leg. Touching lightly causes no discomfort. Deeper pressure causes considerable tenderness and there appears to be a thickness like a fat tube in one area that does not occur on the other leg. There is a little bit of warmth in the red areas, but not much.

Answered by Dr. Jorge Brenes-Salazar (6 minutes later)

thanks for clarifying the location. with that in mind, the 2 most common possibilities would be a bacterial soft tissue infection called cellulitis which may require antibiotics, or a clot in a vein. If I were seeing you in my office or the ED, I would probably order a venous ultrasound to rule out clots, if negative then I would favor cellulitis. Both are conditions that deserve a medical appointment with a provider who can examine the leg directly

hope that helps

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar

Follow up: Dr. Jorge Brenes-Salazar (17 minutes later)

Thank you! I have been laid-off and have no health insurance. I will do what I can to get it looked at. I know clots can be life threatening.

Answered by Dr. Jorge Brenes-Salazar (2 hours later)

Brief Answer:
God speed

Detailed Answer:
Great! I do encourage you to look into the issue.

Best regards

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar