Ichthyosis is a term used to describe continual scaling of the skin. It comes from a Greek word “ichthys” which means fish although not all affected people have fish-like scales. It is quite rare and can be inherited or develop later in life. The inherited forms of ichthyoses are usually evident at or soon after birth and they tend to persist throughout life although many types improve with age.
The causes of ichthyosis is likely to do with a lack of the skin’s ability to shed, causing it to thicken. Treatments include moisturising the skin so extra thick skin is not too hard, but sometimes tablets are necessary to reduce the production of the excess skin.