Blisters on the face not only spoil the appearance of a person, but can also be a sign of pathology. In medicine, such formations are called a bubble rash. In some cases, it can be eliminated at home. However, if the rashes are caused by an allergic reaction or an infectious disease, then this requires medical attention.
Causes of skin irritation
Blisters on the face are always the result of severe irritation of the epidermis. Such a skin reaction can occur with various diseases and conditions:
- Allergy. Skin irritation may occur due to exposure to various substances: cosmetics, detergents, medicines, certain types of food. Redness first appears on the skin, accompanied by itching. Often the patient has a runny nose, sneezing, coughing. Then bubbles form with liquid. Only a doctor can identify the type of allergen after a special analysis.
- Burn with ultraviolet rays. Often, vesicles on the skin appear when you abuse the tan. A sign of a mild burn is redness and pain when touched. With a more serious lesion, watery blisters appear on the face. Sometimes the bubbles do not appear immediately, but some time after excessive exposure to sunlight.
- Thermal and chemical burns. The cause of blisters may be exposure to high temperatures or aggressive chemicals. These are signs of a 2nd degree burn. The patient feels severe pain at the lesion site.
- A bite of an insect. In this case, a red blister forms on the face. In its center you can see a small dot of gore - the place of a bite. The patient is worried about itching. But unlike allergies, the patient does not itch all over his face, but only a small area of ββthe lesion.
- Stress. Many patients are aware of a rash caused by nerves. The skin can respond to strong emotional experiences with the appearance of a rash. Rashes usually consist of very small blisters on the skin of the face and other parts of the body. Often these vesicles itch. If the cause of the rash is stress, then after a few days everything goes away on its own.
- Infectious diseases. Blisters on the face of a child are often one of the manifestations of a viral or bacterial disease. Most often, such a rash is noted with chickenpox and measles. At the same time, the patient's general state of health sharply worsens: the temperature rises, weakness and aching in the joints appear. If the vesicles are localized in the area of ββthe lips, then this is most often associated with a herpetic infection ("fever" on the lips).
Symptomatology
A blister is a bubble on the skin filled with liquid. From above it is covered with a thin layer of the epidermis. The color of the formation can be different - from red to transparent. A photo of a blister on his face can be seen below.
Concomitant symptoms depend on the underlying disease. After all, vesicles on the skin are only one of the manifestations of the pathology:
- With allergies and insect bites, itching and redness of the skin are noted.
- Infectious diseases are usually accompanied by fever and weakness.
- With burns, the patient complains of pain and burning in the affected areas.
- Rashes under stress resemble an allergic reaction in their manifestations and may be accompanied by itching.
Blisters should be distinguished from corns, which are formed due to prolonged friction of the skin on a rough surface. Such an effect on the epidermis can also lead to the appearance of bubbles. However, corns are extremely rare on the face. Most often they appear on the toes and hands.
First aid
When vesicles appear on the skin of the face, it is best to consult a doctor. It is sometimes very difficult to independently determine the cause of their occurrence. However, before contacting a specialist, first aid should be provided to the patient:
- The edges of the rashes need to be treated with any antiseptic drug. This should be done very carefully, without touching the bubbles themselves, so as not to provoke pain and burning.
- A bandage should be applied to the affected area. This will help prevent skin injuries and bacteria.
What can not be done
Very often, blisters on the face are accompanied by itching. Such a symptom is noted with allergies, chickenpox, an insect bite. However, you need to try not to comb the rashes. Otherwise, a bacterial infection can be introduced into the skin, as a result, pustules will appear on the epidermis. After such a lesion, scars may remain on the face. If the patient suffers from very severe itching, it is better to treat the skin with an antihistamine cream.
In no case should you pierce the bubbles. Swollen blistering skin protects the deeper layers of the epidermis from bacteria. At home, it is impossible to comply with the necessary rules of antiseptics, so piercing most often leads to serious skin disease.
Alternative methods of treatment can be useful only with minor skin lesions. If the blisters on the face for a long time do not pass, then you need to see a doctor.
Diagnostics
If blisters appear on the face, then the doctor most often makes a diagnosis according to the appearance of the rashes and the presence of concomitant symptoms. However, sometimes identifying the cause of the appearance of vesicles can cause difficulties even for an experienced specialist. For example, infectious diseases with a rash can occur in an atypical form, without an increase in temperature and a marked deterioration in well-being. In such cases, they are very easy to confuse with allergies. For the purpose of differential diagnosis, the following tests are prescribed:
- allergy tests for various types of irritants;
- blood test for antibodies to chickenpox virus.
If there is a suspicion that the blisters on the face arose from burns, a thorough history should be examined. It is necessary to find out whether the person was in the sun for a long time, and also whether he had contact with hot objects and chemicals.
Sometimes it is very difficult to detect insect bites. A person does not always immediately notice such lesions. Often, the patient did not even feel the bite itself, and after a while blisters appear on the skin. However, this manifestation is a type of allergy to poison and saliva. Therefore, it is useful to conduct a blood test for specific immunoglobulins E. This will help determine the type of insect.
Drug treatment
The choice of medications to treat blisters depends on the cause of their appearance. In each case, it is necessary to influence the etiology of the disease. Most often, local drugs are prescribed along with medications for oral administration.
For allergies, antihistamines are used. Prescribe tablets for internal use: Suprastin, Tavegil, Tsetrin, Claritin. To relieve itching and rashes, it is recommended to treat the affected areas with ointments: "Fenistil", "Psilo-balm". Hormonal creams are not recommended for use on the face. The same means are used for insect bites.
If the rashes are caused by a burn of the face, then local ointments are prescribed: "Panthenol", "Dexpanthenol", "Solcoseryl". They contribute to the rapid healing of the epidermis.
When chickenpox rashes are treated with a solution of "Brilliant Green" or "Potassium Permanganate". If bubbles are noted only around the mouth, then most likely they are caused by the herpes virus. In this case, the ointment "Acyclovir" will help.
With bubble rashes of any etiology, vitamin E (tocopherol) is very useful. In pharmacy chains, you can buy oil with this ingredient. Such a composition is applied topically. It contributes to the disappearance of blisters and the healing of the epidermis.
Folk remedies
At home, you can eliminate only small rashes after an insect bite, sunburn or stress. In all other cases, you need to see a doctor. Many people suffer from individual intolerance to plant components, so the use of folk remedies can aggravate allergic manifestations.
The following home remedies for blisters and itching are recommended:
- Rub raw potatoes to a state of slurry and apply to the affected area.
- Lubricate the rash with sea buckthorn oil.
- Make an ointment from a decoction of calendula and petroleum jelly. Take the ingredients in equal proportions. With this tool, lubricate problem areas three times a day.
- Attach the cut aloe leaf to the blister, attach with a band-aid and keep for about half an hour.
Prevention
Since blisters are only one of the symptoms of various diseases, their prevention comes down to the prevention of pathologies. To avoid the appearance of bubble rashes on the epidermis, the following recommendations of doctors should be observed:
- avoid contact with irritating substances;
- stay in open sunlight should be moderate;
- use caution when working with burning chemicals and hot objects;
- apply repellents to prevent insect bites;
- avoid contact with patients with chickenpox, measles and herpes.
Compliance with these measures will help minimize the risk of bubble rash.