Some of us may suffer from the occasional acne breakout, restless leg syndrome or allergy attacks, but as annoying as these things may be, they don’t compare to any of the afflictions that result into an unusual physical appearance.
The rare and little-understood medical conditions these people suffer from, baffle even the most renowned specialists, and for many of them, there is no known cure-all treatment. Let us look at these rare diseases one by one.
1. Cotard’s Delusion (Walking dead syndrome)
It is an uncommon neuropsychiatric disorder in which patients experience delusions or false beliefs that they are dead, do not exist, are putrefying or have lost their vital organs.
In some cases, they can even smell the rotting flesh.
The condition can simply be described as "existence denial".
It is sometimes accompanied by symptoms of guilt, anxiety and negativity.
2. Epidermodysplasia Verruciformis (Tree bark skin disorder)
People go to great lengths to get rid of a single wart. What if your entire body were covered in them?
That's reality for the few people in the world who have 'Epidermodysplasia Verruciformis', a hereditary skin disorder in which skin growths caused by the human papilloma virus (HPV) spread out of control.
One of the most severe cases is that of Dede Koswara, an Indonesian Man who has been called “Tree Man”.
95% of his warts were removed in 2008, but most of them grew back, making it clear that he will require 2 surgeries a year for the rest of his life to keep them at bay.
3. Xeroderma Pigmentosum (Vampire effect)
Xeroderma pigmentosum, which is commonly known as XP, is an inherited condition characterized by an extreme sensitivity to ultraviolet (UV) rays from sunlight.
This condition mostly affects the eyes and areas of skin exposed to the sun. Some affected individuals also have problems involving the nervous system.
Ok, so they’re not actually vampires. They don’t drink blood and sleep in coffins, but they do suffer from a rare disease that has vampire-like symptoms.
The most obvious, and important part of treatment, is avoiding exposure to sunlight. Fewer than 40% of individuals with the disease survive beyond the age of 20.
4. Alien Hand syndrome
In this medical condition, the individual has full sensation in the hand, but it seems 'possessed'.
It's caused by a separation of the lobes of the brain whether through injury or surgery, and there's no cure other than to distract the errant hand with an object to handle.
5. Hypertrichosis (Were Wolf Syndrome)
Hypertrichosis (also called Ambras syndrome) is an abnormal amount of hair growth over the body; extensive cases of hypertrichosis have informally been called werewolf syndrome, because the appearance is similar to the mythical werewolf.
6. Blue man Syndrome:
In this disease, the person starts turning blue. This is due to a deficiency enzyme, leading to a higher level than normal of methemoglobin in the blood and a reduced oxygen-carrying capacity.
There is less oxygen in the blood, which is brown instead of red, and the skin turns blue instead of white.
7. Cutaneous Horns
These are unusual skin tumours with the appearance of horns. It is a clinical diagnosis referring to a conical projection of cornified material above the surface of the skin that resembles a miniature horn.
The component causing this disease is still unknown, but it is believed that prolonged exposure to radiation can result into this. The horn can be simply cut by a sterile razor.
