Anyone else get the "Disney Rash" on their legs?

GranddadTom

Mouseketeer
Joined
Nov 16, 2006
My wife and I just returned from a week at WDW and Universal. We had a wonderful time but on the next to last day we noticed a rash developing around her ankles. It now covers most of her lower leg from the top of where her socks ended (nothing on her feet) up to below her knees. We Googled "Disney Rash" and found many references to it but no definite answer. The day the rash broke out we had done a lot of walking - probably in excess of five miles - but we're both in good shape and that amount of walking is not something we can't handle. She's more on the thin side rather than stout. From what I've read on the Google search the rash goes away quickly but I was just wondering what causes it. Any thoughts?
 
My wife and I just returned from a week at WDW and Universal. We had a wonderful time but on the next to last day we noticed a rash developing around her ankles. It now covers most of her lower leg from the top of where her socks ended (nothing on her feet) up to below her knees. We Googled "Disney Rash" and found many references to it but no definite answer. The day the rash broke out we had done a lot of walking - probably in excess of five miles - but we're both in good shape and that amount of walking is not something we can't handle. She's more on the thin side rather than stout. From what I've read on the Google search the rash goes away quickly but I was just wondering what causes it. Any thoughts?

My kids get something like this from chlorine (in public pools). Were you in the water?
 
My daughter and I have both gotten rashes the past few times at WDW. I think it is the chlorine...but not the pool, the jacuzzi.
 
I suspect it might well be a type of heat rash. Many census workers in Fl would relate similar stories of rashes. I have read it is due in part to a large amount of heat radiating from the sidewalks and pavement.
 


My DH gets "Disney Rash" when we're in the parks. It has something to do with walking in the heat, and like a PP said, the heat radiates from the asphalt. The trip he had it the worst, we didn't go swimming, so we ruled that out. Now, we make sure we have cream for it, so he's not uncomfortable.
 
Is she use to wearing shorts? Does the skin on her legs see sun a lot? Or not that often. If the rash is on an area that is not use to seeing sun it could be due to sun posioning.
 


Is this what it looks like? See the red spot on the left leg above the ankle. I had a few more on the back of my legs. Only water we played in at WDW in Oct 07 was BB and park rides. No pools or hot tubs. Family Dr told me it was a heat type rash.

IMG_0020-1.jpg
 
Does this rash hurt or itch????? What cream did the pp use?

It gets really red, swells, and itches. My DH uses some kind of anti-itch cream...maybe cortisone? It's in our Owner's Locker, so I can't look to see exactly what kind it is.
 
Is this what it looks like? See the red spot on the left leg above the ankle. I had a few more on the back of my legs. Only water we played in at WDW in Oct 07 was BB and park rides. No pools or hot tubs. Family Dr told me it was a heat type rash.

IMG_0020-1.jpg

My DH also wears Crocs when we're in the park. I wonder they may have something to do with it? His rash is redder and more spread out, though.
 
it mite be the sun screen with aloe. i had the same problem try to fined sun screen without aloe.
 
I had the rash on one of our recent visits and blamed it on having waded in the ocean on a trip to the beach, OR I thought that it might be bed bug bites, as we had heard that a lot of Florida hotels have been having problems lately with bed bugs. It is good to hear that it was probably heat related. I know that it was very uncomfortable for a few days.
 
My mom gets something similar when we go to Florida. Hers is caused by the "no see um" bugs. Not really sure what they really are, but that is what she always calls them.
 
I get the same thing - reddish patches on my legs - it started on a trip last year and usually starts after day 2 or 3 and clears up right after we get home. It only happens during hot times of the year. I am in the sun and pool almost daily at home with my 2 little guys so I know it isn't that. Too funny it has a name! I thought it was just me :)
 
I found this on the Internet this morning:

"Go to any multi-day walking event in the summer and you will see a red heat rash on the calves of many walkers. The heat rash often starts above the sock line and makes red patches and splotches up the calf. It usually doesn't itch and is believed to be heat-related, since these same walkers don't get it in cooler weather. What is it?
Golfer's Vasculitis

Ask most physicians about this common rash and they draw a blank. That is probably due to few people seeking medical help for it. The rash usually clears up in a couple of days, usually before they are able to get an doctor's appointment. At last, a paper in the Australasian Journal of Dermatology has described it and proposed naming it "golfer's vasculitis."

Causes of the Heat Leg Rash

Researchers interviewed several people with the rash and discovered that many underwent extensive allergy testing because they believed they must have been having a reaction to some chemical or plant. But it was simply an irritation of the blood vessels following prolonged exercise in the heat, such as walking for extended periods or playing 18 holes of golf.

The rash is more common in people over 50. Most walkers can't pinpoint anything new they have used that may be causing a reaction. And since so many walkers have it, they couldn't all have contacted the same irritant. The source is simply heat and age--your leg blood vessels getting irritated from the heat.
Prevention and Treatment of Golfer's Vasculitis

The research offered no treatment or prevention recommendations. It seems to occur in healthy, active people. The researchers suggest it should not be a health concern and recommend not getting allergy testing, etc.

In my non-medical experience at Breast Cancer 3-Day Walks and walking conventions, this rash appears on a vast range of walkers and commonly goes away by itself after a few days. Pampering yourself after a good long walk by taking a cool bath, sitting with your feet up, or applying cool wet towels to the rash may help relieve discomfort."

Maybe the Mrs. is sneaking out and getting in 18 holes of golf while I'm resting in the hotel!!??
 
I get a rash also, every time we go to Disney. In the past I've blamed sunscreen (never use it at home), chlorine (rarely exposed to it at home), and the sun but never could figure out exactly what the cause was and on our most recent trip I noticed this rash on a lot of people while waiting in lines. I've decided after our most recent trip that it is definately a sun/heat rash. We just returned on 6/23 and my rash that was all over my legs and my back just behind my armpits and had completely cleared up. I have been outside lots of times since we got home but not for any extended period. Yesterday we started scraping and sanding the chipping paint on our patio doors and so we were outside in the direct sun light for a couple of hours and the rash behind my arms came back, little red itchy bumps in patches. My conclusion is heat/sun.

Tina
 
My DH also wears Crocs when we're in the park. I wonder they may have something to do with it? His rash is redder and more spread out, though.

I wear Crocs when I'm not at the parks. And I only get the rash in warmer weather down there. I've never gotten in Nov or Dec. Just July-August and Mid October. I wear Crocs to water parks in the KY area and don't get the rash.:headache: So it might be in the water:lmao:
 
I suspect it might well be a type of heat rash. Many census workers in Fl would relate similar stories of rashes. I have read it is due in part to a large amount of heat radiating from the sidewalks and pavement.

Yep, I've had it too. I believe it's from the heat off the pavement when walking around. I mostly get it when we visit in the summer only.
 
My wife came down with a bad case of "Disney Rash" during a trip to WDW in April 2009. On the morning of our third day of our trip, she noticed a a little bit of redness on her lower legs above her sockline. By that night, the rash had turned a deep red color and had extended all the way from her sockline to half way up her calf. She also was experiencing a burning sensation in her lower legs. We went to the Celebration Hospital Emergency Room where she was diagnosed with "Disney Rash." The physician said that the Disney Rash was caused by a combination of heat and sunlight reflecting off the pavement, resulting in the bursting of tiny blood vessels right below the skin. Although it can affect anyone, people with circulatory problems or varicose veins are more prone to these symptoms. My wife was advised to keep her feet elevated, keep her legs covered and out of the sunlight, and make sure that she sunscreen on her legs whenever they were exposed to the sun. For the rest of our trip, my wife used a wheel chair and we bought a beach towel to cover her legs. The physician at Celebration Hospital said that the rash would resolve within two weeks, and she was right. However, she also said that in extreme cases, the bursting blood vessels can exacerbate circulatory problems and result in dangerous blood clots.

By the way, there was no "rash" on the surface of the skin. The bursting blood vessels were just under the outer layer of skin.

For those interested, here is a photo we took while my wife was waiting to see the ER physician. Notice how the Disney Rash starts right above her sockline.

DSCN0476.jpg
 
BTW as my DH, wdrl in his post above, to prevent Disney Rash while I'm at WDW, I now use SPF 50 or higher sunscreen and reapply it every few hours. And if I stand in a line for an hour I elevate my legs afterwards for 15 to 20 minutes. Otherwise Disney Rash comes back.

We travel a lot and walk all over the place, just did a month cruise to Europe and the Baltic and I had no problems with the Disney Rash. However, we don't usually stand in one place on sun warmed concrete/asphalt. So I think the standing around compounds the condition.

Oh, and there was no rash on the surface, it was all underneath the skin. I believe the bumps on the skin can be a sun allergy or heat rash. Sunscreen helps that too.
 

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