Brief Answer:
Helpful oral tablets and local treatment options are given below

Detailed Answer:

Hello,

Poison Ivy is generally a contact dermatitis which means it causes redness, swelling, itchiness, and blisters in the skin areas that were in contact with the plant. If you are having lesions on your face with eyes and lips were swollen or difficulty breathing these would be signs of a serious allergic reaction and you will need to go to the ER as soon as possible.

If the eyes and lips are not swollen and you are breathing well (no difficulty) then you can try to take Benadryl. This is an antihistamine (as Hydroxyzine) and is over the counter and many times patients can access it without the need for a prescription. You can take one tablet every 6 hours. Both hydroxyzine and Benadryl may cause you to be drowsy so be cautious and try to avoid driving during the time you use them.

Antihistamines (Benadryl or Hydroxyzine) can help reduce the itchiness but to better have an effect on the allergy sometimes steroids are needed. You can use steroid cream on lesions on the arms 1-2 times a day but not on the face (steroids are not preferred on the face).

If there is intense itchiness local cold compresses will help improve it. Scratching the lesions makes them prone to infection so try to resist it and use local steroids or calamine lotion or cold compresses to suppress the itchiness.

The lesions may take 1-3 weeks to heal and sometimes oral steroids might be needed to suppress the inflammation. These should always be prescribed by a doctor and patients have to be cautious not to take them more than 10 days otherwise they will need to taper down the dose of steroids to avoid steroid deficiency and the serious conditions that happen with it.

To conclude:
1. you can take Benadryl instead of hydroxyzine to help with the itchiness. It is over the counter and easy to access, if you can't find Benadryl than you can look for Chlorpheniramine. All these medications can cause drowsiness so please be cautious.

2. to help control the itchiness local calamine lotions can be of help, cold compresses and steroid cream 1-2 times a day (avoid steroids on the face)

3. lesions might take up to 3 weeks to heal

4. If no improvement or any worsening or you have an eye or lip swelling or shortness of breath, please see your doctor.

5. If you get in contact with poison ivy in future, you should take the clothes off and wash the area with plenty of water, and try to avoid inoculation the oil in other areas of the skin.

Hope I have answered your query. Let me know if I can assist you further.

Kind regards,
Antoneta Zotaj, MD

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