Morgellons Disease Definition, Reason, Symptoms, Treatment & Prevention
Understanding
Morgellons disease or Morgellons syndrome is a rare disorder.
This condition involves skin disorders, where sufferers feel discomfort in or under the skin.
Although it is rather difficult to explain, sufferers will feel the skin being burned, stung, or even scratched.
Complaints are also accompanied by the appearance of black fibers or grains that protrude from the skin and form scabs that are difficult to heal.
Given that this condition is poorly understood, doctors often regard these complaints as delusions.
Patients are treated with cognitive behavioral therapy, the use of antidepressants, antipsychotics, and counseling therapy.
Morgellons skin disease is classified into four criteria, namely:
Morgellons
| Medical specialist | Skin and genitals; soul |
| Symptom | Black fibers appear under the skin or appear to stand out, wounds that are difficult to heal, accompanied by intense itching, creeping, or stinging sensations. |
| Risk Factors | Middle-aged white woman with history of H. pylori infection and head lice infection and thyroid hormone disorder (hypothyroidism) |
| Diagnostic Method | Medical interviews, blood tests to see if there is an infection or not, examination of skin samples |
| Treatment | Not known for certain, depending on the results of the doctor’s examination |
| Drug | Antibiotics, antidepressants (SSRIs, SNRIs), antianxiety |
| Complications | Decreased quality of life, depression, wound infection |
| When to See a Doctor?: | If the above complaints appear, consult a doctor immediately. |
Degree 1
Lesions, fibers, or both present for less than 3 months and are confined to one body site.
Degree 2
Lesions, fibers, or both present for less than 3 months and may be seen elsewhere on the body.
Degree 3
Lesions, fibers, or both present by more than 6 months of age and confined to one body site.
4th degree
Lesions, fibers, or both present over 6 months of age and may be seen elsewhere on the body.
In addition, there are also classifications A, B, and C, namely:
Degree A (Mild)
The filaments that appear in the skin are small and the skin cells appear normal.
Degree B (Moderate)
The filaments in the skin look like a callus, the skin cells start to look abnormal.
Degree C (Weight)
The filaments are more visible and an ulcer may have formed on the skin. In addition, skin cells appear abnormal.
Symptom
Morgellons is a rare skin disease that can cause symptoms, such as:
- Appearance of black, red, white or bluish fibers appearing under or protruding from the skin
- wounds or ulcers that are difficult to heal
- sensations like insects crawling, being bitten or stung on the skin
- annoying itching
- fatigue that doesn’t go away
- concentration disorder
- memory impairment
- muscle and joint pain
- sleep disorder
- anxiety to depression
As a result of itching and ulcers that are difficult to heal, it often affects a person’s quality of life.
Reason
The cause of Morgellons disease is not known with certainty.
Some experts say this skin disease is included in the category of mental illness (delusions).
Mentioned, appear fibers under the skin that comes from cloth or textiles.
On the other hand, Morgellons disease is thought to occur due to infection with the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi, the cause of Lyme disease.
For this reason, until now further studies are needed to determine the exact cause of Morgellons disease.
Risk Factors
Research conducted by the CDC, Morgellons skin disease mostly affects middle-aged women who are white.
In addition, a history of H. pylori infection, flea infections, and hypothyroid disease also increases a person’s risk of this condition.
Diagnosis
In making a diagnosis of Morgellons disease, the doctor will conduct a thorough medical interview and several additional test examinations
Suspicion of Morgellons disease increases if the patient complains of a wound that is difficult to heal, accompanied by a crawling sensation on the skin.
The doctor will also check whether material, such as fibers, is found in the skin and will be further analyzed in the laboratory.
Blood tests and examination of skin samples are also needed to find out whether there is an association with bacterial infections, one of which is B. burgdorferi.
In open wounds that are difficult to heal, secondary infections are often found, such as Staphylococcus infections.
Collaboration with a psychiatrist (psychiatrist) may be needed to evaluate whether there is suspicion of depression, anxiety, or other mental problems.
Treatment
Until now there is no definitively recommended therapy to treat Morgellons disease.
The therapy given can be different from one another, depending on the cause.
The use of antibiotics will be given if there is evidence of a link with bacterial infection.
The use of topical antibiotics and oral medications can help heal wounds and treat infections that occur.
In addition, the use of anti-itch creams or moisturizers can also be recommended to reduce itching complaints.
Considering that Morgellons sufferers also often experience anxiety or depression, therapy is also needed, such as cognitive behavioral therapy or the use of drugs such as anti-anxiety and anti-depressants.
Research says that holistic treatment, which involves skin therapy and mental health, gives better results.
For this reason, it is very important to be patient and disciplined in carrying out treatment with the doctor who handles it from the start.
Prevention
Given that the exact cause of Morgellons disease is not clear, what can be done as a preventive measure includes:
- adopting a healthy lifestyle, including paying attention to daily nutritional intake and exercising regularly
- maintain healthy skin, use a moisturizer if the skin feels dry to avoid itching
- if you have a wound on the skin, take good care of it to prevent infection
- Clean the living environment regularly
Complications
Untreated Morgellons condition can interfere with the patient’s quality of life.
They will feel depressed, isolated, unable to meet other people because of their condition, to lose focus in work and activities.
In addition, sufferers of Morgellons often pick and scratch their skin because of discomfort. This can cause sores or scabs to appear.
If the wound does not heal, the sufferer will be at risk of infection.
Untreated infection can increase the occurrence of sepsis which can lead to death.
When to See a Doctor?
Early diagnosis and treatment helps reduce the risk of worsening Morgellons disease symptoms.
For this reason, if you experience the complaints above, immediately consult a skin and genital specialist for further treatment.