Red lunulae is characterized by a dusky

erythema Erythema (, ) is redness of the skin or mucous membranes, caused by hyperemia (increased blood flow) in superficial capillaries. It occurs with any skin injury, infection, or inflammation. Examples of erythema not associated with pathology inc ...

confined to the lunulae, as has been reported in association with

alopecia areata Alopecia areata (AA), also known as spot baldness, is a condition in which hair loss, hair is lost from some or all areas of the body. It often results in a few Baldness, bald spots on the scalp, each about the size of a coin. Psychological st ...

.James, William; Berger, Timothy; Elston, Dirk (2005). ''Andrews' Diseases of the Skin: Clinical Dermatology''. (10th ed.). Saunders. . It is most commonly seen on the thumbnail.

Signs and symptoms

Red lunulae describes

that either totally or partially takes the place of that structure's typical white tone. It is typically visible on the

thumbnail Thumbnails are reduced-size versions of pictures or videos, used to help in recognizing and organizing them, serving the same role for images as a normal text index does for words. In the age of digital images, visual search engines and image-o ...

, where the lunula is most noticeable.

Causes

Increased arteriolar blood flow, the vasodilatory capacitance phenomenon, and modifications to the optical characteristics of the nail plate overlaying the

blood vessel Blood vessels are the tubular structures of a circulatory system that transport blood throughout many Animal, animals’ bodies. Blood vessels transport blood cells, nutrients, and oxygen to most of the Tissue (biology), tissues of a Body (bi ...

, which accentuates the normal blood vessels, have all been proposed as possible causes of the red lunula. Disorders associated with red lunulae include

systemic lupus erythematosus Lupus, formally called systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), is an autoimmune disease in which the body's immune system mistakenly attacks healthy tissue in many parts of the body. Symptoms vary among people and may be mild to severe. Common ...

, reticulosarcoma,

psoriasis Psoriasis is a long-lasting, noncontagious autoimmune disease characterized by patches of abnormal skin. These areas are red, pink, or purple, dry, itchy, and scaly. Psoriasis varies in severity from small localized patches to complete b ...

, hepatic cirrhosis, lymphogranuloma venereum,

rheumatoid arthritis Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a long-term autoimmune disorder that primarily affects synovial joint, joints. It typically results in warm, swollen, and painful joints. Pain and stiffness often worsen following rest. Most commonly, the wrist and h ...

cardiac failure Heart failure (HF), also known as congestive heart failure (CHF), is a syndrome caused by an impairment in the heart's ability to fill with and pump blood. Although symptoms vary based on which side of the heart is affected, HF typically pre ...

, and

carbon monoxide poisoning Carbon monoxide poisoning typically occurs from breathing in carbon monoxide (CO) at excessive levels. Symptoms are often described as " flu-like" and commonly include headache, dizziness, weakness, vomiting, chest pain, and confusion. Large ...

Signs and symptoms

Causes

History

See also

References

Further reading

External links