Please call 911 immediately if you are having chest pain, difficulty breathing, severe bleeding, sudden weakness or numbness, or if you think you have a medical emergency.

Sunburn Treatment

Self-Care at Home

Home care starts before a sunburn. If you are prepared before going out in the sun, you probably won't need these tips and techniques.

• Immediate self-care is aimed at stopping the UV radiation.
  
  
  • Get out of the sun
    
    
  • Cover exposed skin
    
    
  • Get out of the tanning bed
  
  
  
• Relief of the discomfort becomes important.
  
  
  • Medications such as aspirin, ibuprofen , and naproxen are useful, especially when started early.
    
    
  • For mild sunburn, cool compresses with equal parts of milk and water may suffice. You may also use cold compresses with Burow solution. You can buy this at a drugstore. Dissolve 1 packet in 1 pint of water. Soak gauze or a soft clean cloth in it. Gently wring out the cloth and apply to the sunburned area for 15-20 minutes. Change or refresh the cloth and solution every 2-3 hours.
    
    
  • Anyone raised in a beach community knows the secret of aloe-based lotions. There are many commercially available types. Ask the pharmacist at your local drugstore. Tearing apart your aloe plant in the yard and applying the cool jellylike substance inside the leaves is no longer necessary.
    
    
  • Cool (not ice cold) baths may help. Avoid bath salts, oils, and perfumes because these may produce sensitivity reactions. Avoid scrubbing the skin or shaving the skin. Use soft towels to gently dry yourself. Don't rub. Use a light, fragrance-free skin moisturizer.
    
    
  • Avoid lotions that contain topical anesthetic medications because you can become sensitized and then allergic to that medicine.
    
    
  • Obviously, stay out of the sun while you are sunburned.

Medical Treatment

Silver sulfadiazine (1% cream, Thermazene) can be used for treatment of sunburn with appropriate cautions about use on the face.

• If your case is mild and not life threatening, the doctor may simply suggest plenty of fluids, aspirin, or other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medications (NSAIDs).

• Additional topical measures such as cool compresses, Burow solution soaks, or high-quality moisturizing creams and lotions may be prescribed.

• If your case is severe enough (sun poisoning), oral steroid therapy (cortisone like medications) may be prescribed for several days. Steroid creams placed on the skin show minimal to no benefit.

• Stronger pain-relieving medication may be prescribed in certain cases.

• If you have blistering, steroids may be withheld to avoid an increased risk of infection. If you are dehydrated or suffering from heat stress , IV fluids will be given, and you may be admitted to the hospital. People with very severe cases may be transferred to the hospital's burn unit.

Sunburn  Sunburn Treatment 

Home treatment measures may provide some relief from a mild sunburn.

• Use cool cloths on sunburned areas.
• Take frequent cool showers or baths.
• Apply soothing lotions that contain aloe vera to sunburned areas. Topical steroids (such as 1% hydrocortisone cream) may also help with sunburn pain and swelling. Note: Do not use the cream on children younger than age 2 unless your doctor tells you to. Do not use in the rectal or vaginal area in children younger than age 12 unless your doctor tells you to.

A sunburn can cause a mild fever and a headache. Lie down in a cool, quiet room to relieve the headache. A headache may be caused by dehydration, so drinking fluids may help. For more information, see the topic Dehydration.

There is little you can do to stop skin from peeling after a sunburn-it is part of the healing process. Lotion may help relieve the itching.

Other home treatment measures, such as chamomile, may help relieve your sunburn symptoms.

Care of blisters

Home treatment may help decrease pain, prevent infection, and help the skin heal.

Small, unbroken blisters [less than 1 in. across] usually heal on their own.

• Do not try to break the blisters. Just leave them alone.
• Do not cover the blisters unless something such as clothing is rubbing against them. If you do cover them, apply a loose bandage. Secure the bandage so the tape does not touch the blisters. Do not wrap tape completely around a hand, arm, foot, or leg because it could cut off the blood supply if the limb swells. If the tape is too tight, you may develop symptoms below the level of the tape, such as numbness, tingling, pain, or cool and pale or swollen skin.
• Avoid wearing clothes or shoes or doing activities that rub or irritate the blisters until they have healed.

Large or broken blisters usually heal without problems. Most large blisters will break on their own and then heal.

• Wash your hands with soap and water before touching blisters. Blisters can easily become infected.
• If you have a large blister, you may want to drain it depending on where it is. If you decide to drain it:
  • Clean a needle with rubbing alcohol or soap and water, then use it to gently puncture the edge of the blister.
  • Press the fluid in the blister toward the hole you made.
  • Wash the blister after you have drained it, and pat it dry with clean gauze.
• Do not remove the flap of skin covering the blister unless it tears or gets dirty or pus forms under it. If the blister has just a small puncture or break, leave the flap of skin on and gently smooth it flat over the tender skin underneath.
• Apply an antibiotic ointment, such as polymixin B or bacitracin, if you are not allergic to it. The ointment will prevent the bandage from sticking to the blister and may help prevent infection. Do not use alcohol or iodine on the blister because these may delay healing. Do not use an ointment if you know you are allergic to it.
• Loosely apply a bandage or gauze. Secure the bandage so the tape does not touch the blister. Do not wrap tape completely around a hand, arm, foot, or leg because it could cut off the blood supply if the limb swells. If the tape is too tight, you may develop numbness, tingling, pain, or cool and pale or swollen skin below the level of the tape.
• If the skin under the bandage begins to itch or develops a rash, stop using the antibiotic ointment.
• Change the bandage every day and any time it gets wet or dirty. You can soak the bandage in cool water just before removing it to make it less painful to take off.
• Avoid wearing clothes or shoes or doing activities that rub or irritate the blisters until they have healed.

Online Resource

Sunburn  sunburn help 

Avoid sun exposure

The best way to prevent a sunburn is to avoid sun exposure.

Stay out of the midday sun (from 10 in the morning to 4 in the afternoon), which is the strongest sunlight. Find shade if you need to be outdoors. You can also calculate how much ultraviolet (UV) exposure you are getting by using the shadow rule: A shadow that is longer than you are means UV exposure is low; a shadow that is shorter than you are means the UV exposure is high.

Other ways to protect yourself from the sun include wearing protective clothing, such as:

• Hats with wide 4 in. brims that cover your neck, ears, eyes, and scalp.
• Sunglasses with UV protection.
• Loose-fitting, tightly woven clothing that covers your arms and legs.

Preventing sun exposure in children

You should start protecting your child from the sun when he or she is a baby. Because children spend a lot of time outdoors playing, they get most of their lifetime sun exposure in their first 18 years.

• Keep babies younger than 6 months of age out of the sun. If sunscreen is needed, a small amount on the face or the back of the hands is not harmful.
• Teach children the ABCs of how to protect their skin from getting sunburned.
  • A = Away. Stay away from the sun in the middle of the day (from 10 in the morning to 4 in the afternoon).
  • B = Block. Use a sunscreen with a sun protection factor (SPF) of 30 or higher to protect babies' and children's very sensitive skin.
  • C = Cover up. Wear clothing that covers the skin, hats with wide brims, and sunglasses with UV protection. Even children 1 year old should wear sunglasses with UV protection.
  • S = Speak out. Teach others to protect their skin from sun damage.

Sunscreen protection

If you can't avoid being in the sun, use a sunscreen to help protect your skin while you are in the sun.

• Use a sunscreen that has a sun protection factor (SPF) of at least 30 or higher. Sunscreens that say "broad-spectrum" can protect the skin from ultraviolet A and B (UVA and UVB) rays. Sunscreens come in lotions, gels, creams, and ointments.
• Apply the sunscreen at least 30 minutes before going in the sun.
• Apply sunscreen to all the skin that will be exposed to the sun, including the nose, ears, neck, scalp, and lips. Sunscreen needs to be applied evenly over the skin and in the amount recommended on the label. Most sunscreens are not completely effective because they are not applied correctly. It usually takes about 1 fl oz to cover an adult's body.
• Apply sunscreen every 2 to 3 hours while in the sun and after swimming or sweating a lot. The SPF value decreases if a person sweats heavily or is in water, because water on the skin reduces the amount of protection the sunscreen provides. Sunscreen effectiveness is also affected by the wind, humidity, and altitude.
• Use lip balm or cream that has sun protection factor (SPF) of 30 or higher to protect your lips from getting sunburned or developing cold sores.

Sunlight can help our mental outlook and help us feel healthier. For people with arthritis, the sun's warmth can help relieve some of their physical pain. Many people also think that a suntan makes a person look young and healthy. However, sunlight can be harmful to the skin, causing immediate problems as well as problems that may develop years later.

A sunburn is skin damage from the sun's ultraviolet (UV) rays. Most sunburns cause mild pain and redness but affect only the outer layer of skin (first-degree burns). The red skin might hurt when you touch it. These sunburns are mild and can usually be treated at home.

Skin that is red and painful and that swells up and blisters may mean deep skin layers and nerve endings have been damaged (second-degree burn). This type of sunburn is usually more painful and takes longer to heal.

Other problems that can be present along with sunburn include:

• Heatstroke or other heat-related illnesses from too much sun exposure.
• Allergic reactions to sun exposure or to sunscreen products.
• Vision problems, such as burning pain, decreased vision, or partial or complete vision loss.

Long-term problems include:

• An increased chance of having skin cancer.
• An increase in other health problems, such as lupus or cold sores.
• Cataracts, from direct, intense sun exposure over many years. Cataracts are one of the leading causes of blindness.
• Skin changes, such as premature wrinkling or brown spots.

Your skin type affects how easily you become sunburned. People with fair or freckled skin, blond or red hair, and blue eyes usually sunburn easily. Your age also affects how your skin reacts to the sun. The skin of children younger than 6 and adults older than 60 is more sensitive to sunlight.

You may get a more severe sunburn depending on:

• The time of day. You are more likely to get a sunburn between 10 in the morning and 4 in the afternoon, when the sun's rays are the strongest. You might think the chance of getting a sunburn on cloudy days is less, but the sun's damaging UV light can pass through clouds.
• Whether you are near reflective surfaces, such as water, white sand, concrete, snow, and ice. All of these reflect the sun's rays and can cause sunburns.
• The season of the year. The position of the sun on summer days can cause a more severe sunburn.
• Altitude. It is easy to get sunburned at higher altitudes because there is less of the earth's atmosphere to block the sunlight. UV exposure increases about 4% for every 1000 ft gain in elevation.
• How close you are to the equator (latitude). The closer you are to the equator, the more direct sunlight passes through the atmosphere. For example, the southern United States gets 1.5 times more sunlight than the northern United States.
• The UV index of the day, which indicates the risk of getting a sunburn that day.

Preventive measures and home treatment are usually all that is needed to prevent or treat a sunburn.

• Protect your skin from the sun.
• Do not stay in the sun too long.
• Use sunscreens and wear clothing that covers your skin.

If you have any health risks that may increase the seriousness of sun exposure, you should avoid being in the sun from 10 in the morning to 4 in the afternoon.

Review the Emergencies and Check Your Symptoms sections to determine if and when you need to see a doctor.

Sunburn