Contaminated water in an eastern Michigan city where a drinking water crisis erupted last year likely caused the rashes experienced by Flint residents.

An investigation into the rashes by the Department of Health and Human Services and the state of Michigan found the water in the Flint River might have been the cause, results released Tuesday show.

The water from the Flint River had fluctuating levels of pH, chlorine and water hardness and were higher between April 2014-October 2015, when the city was finally cut off from the river as a water source.

"Rashes that developed then might have been made worse by mental and physical stress and changes in personal care routines (showering, bathing, use of harsh soaps and topical treatments) in response to concerns about the water, as well as cold/dry winter weather, lack of treatment and other factors," the report stated.

The city of 100,000 in eastern Michigan has been slammed by drinking water issues since the then-state-controlled city government decided to switch water sources from Lake Huron to the Flint River in April 2014.

The water from the river was so polluted that it caused the lead from pipes leading to homes to leach into the water. That lead contamination eventually caused the state to order the water supply to switch back to Lake Huron in October 2015.

For months, Flint residents were unable to drink the water coming from their taps, and the state and federal government declared a state of emergency. The federal state of emergency ended earlier this month. Flint residents can now drink the water from their taps as long as it's filtered.

However, the lead in the water wasn't the only issue. Bacteria in the water caused multiple shutdowns in the fall of 2014, which city workers fought with too many chemicals that also caused water concerns. There are also concerns that switching the water caused an outbreak of Legionnaire's disease that killed numerous people in the city.

Rashes had widely been reported following the switch in water sources, and government doctors confirmed the switch played a role in harming residents' health.

"The rashes Flint residents have reported are of great concern to the community and to all of us who are working to improve health in the city," said Dr. Nicole Lurie, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' assistant secretary for preparedness and response.

"The team of chemical exposure experts and local dermatologists looked for any and every possible cause of these rashes and found evidence supporting Flint residents' concern that water from the Flint River might have led to skin problems."

Lurie added that current water samples do not show metals and minerals in the water at levels that would harm the skin of Flint residents.

The government reported 390 people participated in the investigation, and 122 people agreed to visit a dermatologist to determine if the water played a role in rashes. According to the investigation, 80 percent of those people had a skin condition possibly caused by the water.

"We also concur that the marked fluctuations in pH, hardness and chlorine while the Flint River was the water source could really explain the most common type of rash found in the study, which was eczema," said Dr. Walter Barkey, one of the dermatologists involved in the study.