# Little black balls on the body **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 1, 2018, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-black-balls-on-the-body/817084 "2018-07-01T03:23:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Warm\_blood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/df705f/32.png) [@Warm\_blood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Warm_blood)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2018, 3:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-black-balls-on-the-body/817084/1 "2018-07-01T03:23:20Z")
Today I saw someone on the bus, a dark-complected young man covered almost completely in black bumps. His face and arms were the only parts of his body uncovered, and he was wearing gloves (it was 30 C today). What medical condition causes that? Is it contagious? Is it painful? ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2018, 4:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-black-balls-on-the-body/817084/2 "2018-07-01T04:08:12Z")
How big were the bumps? By “dark complected”, do you mean that he was olive-skinned, black, Indian, etc.? ---
**Author:** ![TruCelt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trucelt/32/523_2.png) [@TruCelt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TruCelt)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2018, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-black-balls-on-the-body/817084/3 "2018-07-01T04:51:40Z")
Google “skin tags” that may be what you saw. Most insurance companies consider it a cosmetic issue,and will only pay to remove them in extreme cases. It sounds like he may have qualified, and the company paid to have them removed from his face and arms. ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2018, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-black-balls-on-the-body/817084/4 "2018-07-01T04:57:32Z")
Here is one possibility: > [@](#): > > …was suffering from two autoimmune diseases, urticarial vasculitis and hypothyroidism, which were exacerbating each other and causing the rash. [http://boredomtherapy.com/doctors-blind-spot/](http://boredomtherapy.com/doctors-blind-spot/) ---
**Author:** ![Warm\_blood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/df705f/32.png) [@Warm\_blood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Warm_blood)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2018, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-black-balls-on-the-body/817084/5 "2018-07-01T05:27:31Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > How big were the bumps? By “dark complected”, do you mean that he was olive-skinned, black, Indian, etc.? He looked black to me (I couldn’t make out his facial features because he was wearing a baseball cap and I only noticed him as he exited the bus) with dark skin, yes. They were the size of mini pom poms. > [@PastTense](#): > > Here is one possibility: > > [http://boredomtherapy.com/doctors-blind-spot/](http://boredomtherapy.com/doctors-blind-spot/) The differences between that lady and the man I’m describing is that his bumps were very much raised and they were far more numerous, in addition to being present on his face. And as far as skin tags, I highly doubt that is the case. He was wearing gloves in unbearably hot and humid weather. There has to be a reason for why that is. ---
**Author:** ![Beckdawrek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beckdawrek/32/3647_2.png) [@Beckdawrek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beckdawrek)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2018, 6:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-black-balls-on-the-body/817084/6 "2018-07-01T06:14:05Z")
Leprosy? ---
**Author:** ![needscoffee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/needscoffee/32/1076_2.png) [@needscoffee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/needscoffee)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2018, 6:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-black-balls-on-the-body/817084/7 "2018-07-01T06:15:56Z")
Neurofibromatosis. Google images of it. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2018, 11:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-black-balls-on-the-body/817084/8 "2018-07-01T11:48:03Z")
Angiokeratoma? ---
**Author:** ![pool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pool/32/4152_2.png) [@pool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pool)\ **Post date:** [July 1, 2018, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-black-balls-on-the-body/817084/9 "2018-07-01T13:45:00Z")
Keloids? ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2018, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-black-balls-on-the-body/817084/10 "2018-07-02T19:28:13Z")
> [@needscoffee](#): > > Neurofibromatosis. Google images of it. That’s horrific! ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [July 2, 2018, 7:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/little-black-balls-on-the-body/817084/11 "2018-07-02T19:31:14Z")
> [@bump](#): > > That’s horrific! A friend of mine suffers from neurofibromatosis (though his case isn’t as extreme as some of the pictures that you can find). Even so, it’s definitely disfiguring.