If you have any of the following, go to the emergency room right away:
- Trouble breathing or swallowing.
- Rash covers most of your body.
- You have many rashes or blisters.
- Swelling, especially if an eyelid swells shut.
- Rash develops anywhere on your face or genitals.
- Much of your skin itches or nothing seems to ease the itch.
You may be able to treat your rash at home if:
- The rash appears on a small section of your skin.
- You are absolutely certain that your rash is due to poison ivy, poison oak, or poison sumac. If you are not certain, see a dermatologist and do not try to treat the rash at home.
The following tips from dermatologists will help you:
- Treat a rash at home
- Stop the itch
- Prevent a rash from poison ivy, oak, or sumac
Treat a rash at home
If you have a rash from poison ivy, poison oak, or poison sumac, dermatologists recommend the following:
- Rinse your skin right away with lukewarm water. If you can rinse your skin immediately after touching the poison ivy, oak, or sumac, you may be able to rinse off some of the oil.
- Wash all of the clothes you were wearing when you came into contact with the poisonous plant. The oil can stick to clothing. If this oil touches your skin, you can get another rash.
- Wash everything that may have oil on its surface. The oil can stick to many surfaces, including gardening tools, golf clubs, leashes, and even a pet’s fur. Be sure to rinse your pet’s fur. Wash tools and other objects with warm, soapy water.
Caution:
When treating this rash, dermatologists recommend that you:
- Do not apply an antihistamine to your skin. Applying an antihistamine to your skin can worsen the itch and the rash.
- Do not use a hydrocortisone cream or lotion. These relieve only very mild cases.
How long does the rash from poison ivy last?
The rash from poison ivy, oak, or sumac usually lasts 1 to 3 weeks. During this time, your skin can itch.
Stop the itch
As the skin heals, it can itch. It is best not to scratch. Scratching can cause an infection.
To ease the itch at home, dermatologists recommend that their patients try one or more of the following:
- Oatmeal bath: Take short lukewarm baths in a colloidal oatmeal preparation, which you can buy at your local drugstore.
- Baking soda bath: Draw a warm, not hot, bath, and add 1 cup of baking soda to the running water.
- Calamine lotion: Apply this to skin that itches.
- Cool showers: Short cool showers can help.
- Cool compresses: You can make a cool compress by running a clean washcloth under cold water and wringing it out so that it does not drip. Then apply the cool cloth to the itchy skin.
- Antihistamine pills: These pills can help, but you should not apply an antihistamine to your skin. Doing so can worsen the rash and the itch.
Prevent a rash from poison ivy, oak, or sumac
There are two ways to prevent a rash:
- Avoid these poisonous plants.
- Protect your skin.
The following explains how you can identify these plants so that you can avoid them and how to protect your skin when you cannot avoid these plants.
What poison ivy looks like
- Each leaf has 3 small leaflets.
- It grows as a shrub (low woody plant) in the far Northern and Western United States, Canada, and around the Great Lakes.
- It grows as a vine in the East, Midwest, and South of the United States.
- In spring, it grows yellow-green flowers.
- It may have green berries that turn off-white in early fall.
Poison ivy. This plant grows as a vine (pictured) in some areas of the United States. In other areas, it is a shrub. What poison oak looks like
- Each leaf has 3 small leaflets.
- It most often grows as a shrub.
- It can grow as a vine in the Western United States.
- It may have yellow-white berries.
Poison oak. This plant grows as a vine (pictured) in some areas of the United States. In other regions, it grows as a shrub. What poison sumac looks like
- Each leaf has a row of paired leaflets and another leaflet at the end.
- It grows as a tall shrub or small tree.
- In the Northeast and Midwest, it grows in standing water in peat bogs.
- In the Southeast, it grows in swampy areas.
- Often the leaves have spots that look like blotches of black paint. These spots are urushiol, which when exposed to air turn brownish black. Before urushiol hits the air, it is clear or a pale yellow.
- It may have yellow-white berries.
Poison sumac. This plant has 7 to 13 leaflets on each leaf. It grows in standing water as a tall shrub or small tree.
How to protect your skin from poison ivy, oak, and sumac
Sometimes you cannot avoid these plants. When you find yourself in this situation, there are some precautions you can take:
- Use a skin care product called an ivy block barrier. This helps prevent the skin from absorbing the oil (urushiol), which causes the rash. These products usually contain bentoquatam. You can buy these products without a prescription. Be sure to apply the block before going outdoors.
- Wear long pants, long sleeves, boots, and gloves. Even when you apply an ivy block barrier that contains bentoquatam, you need to cover your skin with clothing.
If you find yourself in an area with poison ivy, oak, or sumac, it helps to know the following:
- All parts of these plants contain urushiol. The leaves, the stems, and even the roots contain urushiol. Touching any part of the plant can cause an allergic reaction.
- Touching anything that has urushiol on it can cause an allergic reaction. You can have an allergic reaction from touching gardening tools, sporting equipment, and even a pet’s fur.
- Burning these plants releases urushiol into the air. You can have an allergic reaction if airborne particles land on your skin.
If you get a rash from poison ivy, poison oak, or poison sumac, you can usually treat the rash at home. If you have a serious reaction, seek immediate medical care by going to the emergency room or calling 911.
Learn more about poison ivy, oak and sumac:
Images used with permission of the American Academy of Dermatology National Library of Dermatologic Teaching Slides.