Dermatologic aspects of sports medicine.

The skin lies at the interface of the athlete and the sports milieu and is subjected to many sports-related dermatoses. Direct traumatic injuries, such as friction blisters, black heel, piezogenic papules, and traumatic subungual hematomas, occur regularly. Environmental insults such as sunburn, cold-induced injury, and contact dermatitis plague the sportsman. Cutaneous infections such as "athlete's foot," otitis externa, herpes simplex, and warts occur because of a favorable microenvironment, occurring with sweating and occlusion as well as close interpersonal contact. Sports participation may uncover or exacerbate latent dermatoses such as occurs in acne mechanica and exercise-induced anaphylaxis. The sportsman is best served if the physician considers him as an athlete-patient.