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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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Suggest Remedy For Pain And Redness Due To Sun Burn

I went to the beach yesterday and applied sunscreen every 20-30 minutes or so (I have pale skin), but stupidly forgot to apply it properly to my legs.As a result, I have awful sunburn on the backs of my legs, tops of my feet, and on and around my shins. I'm not blistering, but it's very red and very painful.Things I have tried:aloe, aloe with lidocane (multiple times), ibuprofin, cool bath with oatmeal for 30+ minutes, vinegar-soaked rag applied to burns to pull out pain I was wondering if I can do anything to further and expedite the healing process.
Mon, 13 Oct 2014
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Dermatologist 's  Response
Hello. Thanks for writing to us at healthcaremagic

Acute sunburn can be very painful and discomforting. A sunburn would normally take up to a week to subside.

While aloe vera, cool bath with oatmeal would calm down the skin a bit but a sunburn would respond best to oral and topical steroids which are anti-inflammatory. Steroids are anti-inflammatory, act very fast and immediately bring down the swelling and discomfort.

Steroids (oral as well as topical) are prescription drugs, therefore, you need to visit your doctor for a prescription.

If I was the treating doctor I would suggest you to take a short course of an oral steroids.

In addition to the oral steroids I also ask my patients of sunburn to apply a moderately potent topical steroid e.g fluticasone propionate cream, twice daily for a week.

An OTC pain killer/anti-inflammatory e.g ibuprofen or aspirin can be taken twice or thrice daily to relieve the pain and discomfort.

Always use a broad spectrum sunscreen, throughout the day.

regards
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Suggest Remedy For Pain And Redness Due To Sun Burn

Hello. Thanks for writing to us at healthcaremagic Acute sunburn can be very painful and discomforting. A sunburn would normally take up to a week to subside. While aloe vera, cool bath with oatmeal would calm down the skin a bit but a sunburn would respond best to oral and topical steroids which are anti-inflammatory. Steroids are anti-inflammatory, act very fast and immediately bring down the swelling and discomfort. Steroids (oral as well as topical) are prescription drugs, therefore, you need to visit your doctor for a prescription. If I was the treating doctor I would suggest you to take a short course of an oral steroids. In addition to the oral steroids I also ask my patients of sunburn to apply a moderately potent topical steroid e.g fluticasone propionate cream, twice daily for a week. An OTC pain killer/anti-inflammatory e.g ibuprofen or aspirin can be taken twice or thrice daily to relieve the pain and discomfort. Always use a broad spectrum sunscreen, throughout the day. regards