Lepidopterism is an
irritant contact dermatitis
Irritant contact dermatitis is a form of contact dermatitis that can be divided into forms caused by chemical irritants and those caused by physical irritants.
Chemical
Chemical irritant contact dermatitis is either acute or chronic, which i ...
caused by irritating
caterpillar
Caterpillars ( ) are the larval stage of members of the order Lepidoptera (the insect order comprising butterflies and moths).
As with most common names, the application of the word is arbitrary, since the larvae of sawflies (suborder ...
or
moth
Moths are a group of insects that includes all members of the order Lepidoptera that are not Butterfly, butterflies. They were previously classified as suborder Heterocera, but the group is Paraphyly, paraphyletic with respect to butterflies (s ...
hairs coming into contact with the skin or
mucosa
A mucous membrane or mucosa is a membrane that lines various cavities in the body of an organism and covers the surface of internal organs. It consists of one or more layers of epithelial cells overlying a layer of loose connective tissue. It ...
. When referring to the cause, moth dermatitis and caterpillar dermatitis are commonly used; Caripito itch (known as ''papillonite'' in French) is an older name referring to the moth dermatitis caused by some ''
Hylesia'' species.
See also
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Lonomia
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Oak processionary
The oak processionary (OPM) (''Thaumetopoea processionea'') is a moth whose caterpillars can be found in oak forests, where they feed on oak leaves, causing significant damage. They travel in nose-to-tail processions (hence their name), often ar ...
which may cause airborne problems
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Millipede burn
Millipede burns are a cutaneous condition caused by certain millipedes that secrete a toxic liquid that causes a brownish pigmentation and/or burns when it comes into contact with the skin. Some millipedes produce quinones in their defensive secre ...
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List of cutaneous conditions
Many skin conditions affect the human integumentary system—the organ system covering the entire surface of the Human body, body and composed of Human skin, skin, hair, Nail (anatomy), nails, and related muscle and glands. The major function o ...
References
Further reading
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External links
Caterpillar envenomationon
eMedicine
eMedicine is an online clinical medical knowledge base founded in 1996 by doctors Scott Plantz and Jonathan Adler, and computer engineers Joanne Berezin and Jeffrey Berezin. The eMedicine website consists of approximately 6,800 medical topic revi ...
Stinging catepillars on entomology dept University of Kentucky
Parasitic infestations, stings, and bites of the skin
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