Pityriasis rosea tends to develop gradually and in many cases, one oval patch can develop on the skin. This patch will look pink to salmon-colored in patients with white to olive-colored skin tone and in brown or black skin tone, the patch can look gray to dark brown and often difficult to see.
The first patch often forms on the chest or the back and grows for about two weeks. This patch may look scaly, causing some people to mistake it for ringworm (a fungal infection) but applying medicine that treats ringworm will not clear this patch.
Within a week or two of seeing the first patch, most people develop a rash. The spots that tend to be smaller than the first patch. The rash may appear anywhere on the skin but is most common on the trunk, legs, and arms. Often, the rash is heaviest on the skin covering the lower abdomen and groin area. Your skin may itch, especially if you become overheated.
Most people only get Pityriasis Rosea once in their lifetime. The rash rarely returns.