Follicular Hyperkeratosis (FHK) is caused by keratin buildup around the hair follicles, which creates bumps on the skin. These bumps usually form around friction sites on the skin (the waist, hips, knees, and elbows.)
These symptoms are more common in children and usually lessen in the adolescent and adult years.
CARING FOR FOLLICULAR HYPERKERATOSIS
It is recommended for children with follicular hyperkeratosis to wear loose clothing to ease friction.
PATIENT TIPS & COMMENTS FOR FOLLICULAR HYPERKERATOSIS
K6a patient: “In winter, I put lotion or Vaseline on her body. Urea and Lachydrin burn and do not work. Some perfumed body lotions burn also. I usually use suave or generic brands without perfumes. Tight jeans or corduroy irritate the bumps. She usually wears knit pants (cotton).”
??? patient: “I have bumps on the elbows, knees, and buttocks. I put Vaseline on the elbows and wrap a bandage around them for a few days until they are soft and enough to ‘twing right off.’ On the knees, use a good moisturizer as often as possible. On the buttocks, use moisturizer as often as possible — usually before bed — to let it breathe without anything on it besides the moisturizer. There are no more bumps on knees and elbows now, but you should still moisturize them to prevent any bumps from coming back. It helps the buttocks too. It can take a while for progress, but they will go away if you keep working at it.”
K17 patient: “I use creamy petroleum jelly on the arms and legs.”
K6a patient: “My daughter who is 13 still gets these really bad even on the bottom”
K6a patient: “Exfoliate and moisturize works for me but I don’t have much now.”
K16 patient: “CeraVe Skincare this is good x”
K6b patient: “I had my bottom freezed where the sports where. That sorted out the problem. I had it done at my surgery. It is painful when you have it done as it’s freezing the sports.”
K6a patient “My son has lots. I basically don’t have them anymore as an adult, but had lots as a child. Gentle removal of the centers when they become large and irritating. Then endure.. best you can do.”
K6a patient “For my child we use bathing in the sea or adding dead sea salt in the bath. That loosens them which helps when you remove them. After the bath, just pulling them out. The salt water softens them (long bath) and that seems to make it less painful. Sometimes, when they’re big, it can take more than one session though.”
Unknown “Moisturizer daily is the cure but same as many others, mine are almost non existent as an adult but horribly painful as a kid”
K6a patient “Hi, my son is 6 years old and had it too. Usually we soak in a water with sea salt or potatoes flour, they makes water to be more softer for the skin. I am using also urea cream 15%. It is makes moisture and softer too.”
K6a patient “Although mine were much worse when young, I still have some, elbows, knees and bottom. Moisturizer, bath then try and remove them. I am able to remove some with my fingernails, then apply peroxide or alcohol to prevent infection.”
K6a patient “Braided mitten or any dupe for it, and panoxyl. SCRUB scrub SCRUB in the shower after soaking in a warm/hot bath. After you soak, while scrubbing with the mitten and panoxyl your skin should be coming off in like little eraser shavings and after doing that a few times a week and washing with panoxyl in between, you’ll see a huge difference. Also apply Amlactin lotion afterward.”
K6a patient “I would do few days in a row hot bath, gantle scrub (i found very helpful and gentle a glove type of scrub) and in the end putting on the Dove 24h hydration lotion, which i couldn’t believe how helpful it is. After few days of this they are so soft that they fell off on their own or i scratch them down with the nails or i use the tweezers. Then you can just repeat this every few days to maintain it soft and nice 🙂. Hope it helps.”
K6a patient “An Exfoliating body wash helps a ton! We use Dove and then a good moisturizing lotion like Hempz! Use daily 👍”
K16 patient “My 3 year old is a spontaneous K16, so we are learning as we go. He developed this cluster of bumps on his stomach and on one of his upper legs about a month ago. Is this what the PC cysts look like in little kids? If not, have any of you with PC ever developed something similar?”
K6a patient “I reconize the bumps. The called follicular hyperkeratosis, just what janice posted. My son have this al over his body, hope they disappear when he gets older. Sometimes they itch, but I think when the bumps stay little they don’t hurt.”
Adults also have issues with these little bumps.
K6a patient “Does anyone get these in the summer on the thighs (while the skin is sweating and well my thighs are rubbing against each other as I walk. It is quite painful and somehow I can’t get rid of it. Any advice.”
Unknown “I literally just started getting this, this summer (lockdown weight got me all chubby 🙄😂) and i actually ended up with the worst abscess ive ever experienced from it. Hope yours clears away! X”
K16 patient “I had something similar a few years ago and not sure it was related to pc. Doctor prescribed this and it cleared up https://www.nhs.uk/medicines/fusidic-acid/ started spreading over my legs and bum and just didn’t go away. This cleared it up but was prescription only x”
K6a patient “I get them. What I do is take a bath with plenty of epsom salt then pull them out. It hurts and the do bleed. But I fine if I pull the head out they don’t hurt when I walk. And I think it helps them go away faster. At night I put lotion on the area I find it helps with the red and tenderness around them.”
K6b patient “I get this on my legs and back of upper arms. I am assuming it’s wherever the cuffs of my clothes rub. As a kid I used to get it around my ankles where my socks ended. It drives me crazy.”
K6b patient “Get some cycle shorts for thighs rubbing, I always wear a pair under dresses in the summer. Sooooo much more comfortable.”
K16 patient “I second using cycle shorts they’re a game changer! Using talc on the skin or even a stick type deodorant helps quite a bit too, less sweat means less friction 😅”
K6a patient “I used to get something like this but not as intense. I used a glycolic/salicylic cleanser on it a few times a week and it helped. The one I used is called AHA/BHA cleanser from SkinMedica. When you run the product on let it sit for two or three minutes for the glycolic and salicylic to work it’s magic and then rinse.”
K6a patient “I get them on my butt cheeks and I pick them out”
K6a patient “me too! Anywhere my skin folds or rubs against its self.”
K6a patient “I used to get these horribly when I was younger, grew out of it at 30yo, my derm told me they’re called follicular keritinosis or something like that, it’s basically a build up of keratin in the hair follicle. The fix for me was I’m not very hairy so eventually got better, but also constant use of moisturiser completely cleared it up, theory being it softens the keratin in the hair follicle and doesn’t get clogged up, I only get a rare one on my elbows now and very lightly on my thighs, it clears up completely after a few days of moisturiser.”
K16 patient “When I was pregnant I started getting them on my belly. I still get some once in awhile. I picked at then and used sylic acid. It didn’t help at all but it made me feel better about them.”
K6a patient ““silky underwear” is a powder product from LUSH, used on a hot day it stops the friction rub – amazing”
K6a patient “Sometimes I get that on my hips by my beltline”
