pityriasis

[pit-uh-rahy-uh-sis]

noun

1. Pathology.,  any of various skin diseases marked by the shedding of branlike scales of epidermis.

2. Veterinary Pathology.,  a skin disease in various domestic animals marked by dry scales.

pityriasis

/ ˌpɪtəˈraɪəsɪs /

noun

1. any of a group of skin diseases characterized by the shedding of dry flakes of skin

2. a similar skin disease of certain domestic animals

Word History and Origins

Origin of pityriasis¹

1685–95; < New Latin < Greek pitȳríāsis branlike eruption, equivalent to pítȳr ( on ) bran, scale + -iāsis -iasis

Word History and Origins

Origin of pityriasis¹

C17: via New Latin from Greek pituriasis scurfiness, from pituron bran

Example Sentences

These skin conditions can include, among other things, hives, measles-like rashes and a full body rash similar to pityriasis rosea.

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A Connecticut woman said that when her biracial daughter first developed patches of blanched, hypopigmented skin at age 10, it was misdiagnosed as a benign condition called pityriasis alba.

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In 1924, a skin specialist at the University of Minnesota diagnosed her with pityriasis rubra pilaris, a chronic skin disease that had no significant treatment options or a cure at the time.

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Some dry and scaly skin eruptions, of which pityriasis is the most common, need different treatment.

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Pharmacology and Therapeutics.—Carbolic acid is an efficient parasiticide, and is largely used in destroying the fungus of ringworm and of the skin disease known as pityriasis versicolor.

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