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Cyanosis is the change of body tissue color to a bluish-purple hue, as a result of decrease in the amount of oxygen bound to the hemoglobin in the red blood cells of the capillary bed. [1] Cyanosis is apparent usually in the body tissues covered with thin skin, including the mucous membranes, lips, nail beds, and ear lobes. [1]
Argyria or argyrosis is a condition caused by excessive exposure to chemical compounds of the element silver, or silver dust. [1] The most dramatic symptom of argyria is that the skin turns blue or blue-gray, and is usually most prominent in sun-exposed areas of the skin.
There are also a number of other conditions that affect hands, feet, and parts of the face with associated skin color changes that need to be differentiated from acrocyanosis: Raynaud phenomenon, pernio, acrorygosis, erythromelalgia, and blue finger syndrome. The diagnosis may be challenging in some cases, especially when these syndromes co-exist.
Melanin is produced within the skin in cells called melanocytes and it is the main determinant of the skin color of darker-skin humans. The skin color of people with light skin is determined mainly by the bluish-white connective tissue under the dermis and by the hemoglobin circulating in the veins of the dermis.
Livedo reticularis is a common skin finding consisting of a mottled reticulated vascular pattern that appears as a lace-like purplish discoloration of the skin. [1] The discoloration is caused by reduction in blood flow through the arterioles that supply the cutaneous capillaries, resulting in deoxygenated blood showing as blue discoloration ().
Mongolian spot is a congenital developmental condition—that is, one existing from birth—exclusively involving the skin.The blue colour is caused by melanocytes, melanin-containing cells, that are usually located in the surface of the skin (the epidermis), but are in the deeper region (the dermis) in the location of the spot. [6]
Both of these conditions cause cyanosis, or a bluish discoloration of skin or mucous membranes. [4] Normally, oxygenated blood appears red and deoxygenated blood has more of a blue appearance. [5] In babies with low levels of oxygen or mixing of oxygenated and deoxygenated blood, the blood can have a blue or purple color, causing cyanosis. [6]
Excessive consumption of elemental silver, silver dust or silver compounds can cause the skin to be colored blue or bluish-grey. This condition is called argyria. A similar skin color can result from prolonged exposure to gold, typically as a little-used medical treatment. The gold-induced greyish skin color is called chrysiasis. Argyria and ...