Small raised itchy bumps: what to know

Heat Rash tends to affect warm, sweaty areas and can feel prickly. Folliculitis often centres on hairs and may be tender or pustular. Keratosis Pilaris creates rough, sandpaper-like bumps, commonly on the upper arms or thighs. Milia are tiny white cysts and are usually not itchy. Lichen Planus can produce itchy, firm, darker or purplish bumps. The timing, body site, surface scale, symmetry, and whether other people itch can help distinguish these patterns. Scratching can add redness, broken skin, and infection.

Cool the skin, wear loose breathable clothing, and use a fragrance-free cleanser. Apply a plain moisturiser after bathing if the skin is dry, and keep nails short to reduce injury from scratching. Avoid picking, harsh exfoliation, new fragranced products, and hot showers until the cause is clearer. Oral Antihistamine Treatment may help some itch patterns, but suitability depends on your health, medicines, and the specific cause. Cryotherapy is a clinician procedure for selected lesions and is not a home treatment.

Get urgent help for breathing difficulty, swelling of the lips or tongue, faintness, blistering, skin peeling, or a rapidly spreading rash. Arrange a medical review if bumps persist, recur, become painful, ooze, form crusts, disturb sleep, or affect several household members. Seek advice sooner for an infant, pregnancy, or a new medicine-associated eruption.

Ask which features point toward folliculitis, heat rash, keratosis pilaris, bites, or inflammation; whether a medicine is appropriate for itch; and how to protect the skin while the diagnosis is being made. Mention travel, contacts with similar symptoms, products, and medicines.