Red Chest, Taking Antihistamines For Urticaria, History Of Chest Rosacea. Red Chest Due To Hives?

Posted on Tue, 2 Oct 2012

Question: I am taking antihistamines for urticaria; I also had rosacea on my chest a few years ago. So, I'm curious about why my chest is red again. I was staying in shade and carrying a parasol, but it looks like I got red from sun, since where my straps were it is white. Could I have a red chest or sensitivity to sun there due to my hives? or if it's just red (but never hot) could it be rosacea? thanks

Answered by Dr. Gaurang Krishna (6 hours later)

Hello XXXXXXX

With the description you gave, it looks like a very mild sunburn.

There is no direct relation between hives (urticaria) or the antihistamines and sunburns.

But mind you, patients of rosacea are more sensitive to sun induced redness (or flushing) than the general population. So you must use a sunblock cream/lotion of SPF 26+ atleast twice daily in addition to some physical barrier to sunlight such as cotton garments. It is better to avoid sun exposure.

I hope I have answered your queries. I will be available for any further queries that you have.

Thanks

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar

Follow up: Dr. Gaurang Krishna (17 hours later)

Thank you for answering. The thing that makes me doubt that it's a sunburn is that I noticed the redness over 10 days ago, and it just stays the same. Some parts of the day it looks redder than others, but it never goes away entirely. It's true that because I was covered with rashes and worried about the cause, I was for a few weeks not putting anything on my skin, like sunblock. I usually have at least 45 sunblock there. and even during those few outings, we sought the shade and I always carried a parasol. Neither my face nor arms got any color, jus that neck/chest area.
A doctor that was removing my stitches at UCLA said that he thought it was years of sun exposure as a child finally appearing. But that sounded strange - like quite a coincidence that it would be during my urticaria weeks to finally decide to appear! And since I hardly every wear a uneck top, why would it after all these years take the form of that uneck?

So, that's why I was leaning to a reaccurence of rosacea; but if it is "years of sun finally appearing" will it fade back to the color it usually is? And will it hurt me to use my rosacia cream (finacea) in the meantime?

Thanks again!

Answered by Dr. Gaurang Krishna (2 days later)

Hello,

Sorry for the delay.

It still sounds like sun burn. What happens is that, with long term sun exposure the face and the arms/forearms become some what resistant to sunlight ( a type of adaptation called photohardening), but the chest and the back dont have such kind of adaptation owing to less sun exposure.

That is why with the same amount of sun exposure, the chest gets red but the face and arms do not.

I suspect, that is exactly what has happened to you.

Nevertheless, it will be helpful if you can attach the pics of the lesions on the right hand side of this window (the space is provided).

Wishing you good health.

Note: Hope the answers resolves your concerns, however for further guidance of skin related queries consult our Dermatologist.Click here to book a consultation

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Radhika