Talk:Urushiol-induced contact dermatitis

homeopathic Rhus Tox

One remedy not mentioned is the homeopathic Rhus Tox, which is highly effective--stops the rash and removes the itch as if by magic. Perhaps someone can come up with figures and studies. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.188.182.64 (talk • contribs)

Homeopathic medicine has not been proven to work. Mo-Al 18:29, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

Is This Necessary

"Urinating on the affected areas has no effect."

ROFL. What? I really don't understand the point of this. Is this some rumour in circulation? Is this really necessary to point out? It just seems really out of place, because there's not even anything leading up to the notion that something warm and acidic could help cure a poison ivy rash. In fact, previous statements already say what does. Why does this need to be here?

Plants

Nice article. I just have a few comments on the plants. When possible, the use of scientific plant names has a number of advantages, especially with rare plants where different authors invent different "common names" which are not common at all. If we have an article for a plant, it is almost guaranteed to be accessible from the scientific name, while redirects from common names are less dependably present and less dependably correct. I realize that chasing down the scientific names is not always convenient, and that we're all unpaid volunteers. Thanks — Pekinensis 18:23, 16 August 2005 (UTC)

• Thanks, I certainly have no problems with the idea as I mostly just wanted to get the article started. I also went ahead and added my own pic of one of the plants... hopefully someone can replace it with a PD photo of a rash, which might be more appropriate. -Timvasquez 21:06, 16 August 2005 (UTC)

Should more be mentioned that most (? all) of the folk remedies mentioned have little (or no) basis in medical fact - I remember coming across a reference somewhere which stated that jewelweed does not work (can't remember where, unfortunately) - MPF 23:49, 16 August 2005 (UTC)

Sensitivity by population?

The article estimates that 20% - 40% of people are not allergic to urushiol. I thought I had read somewhere that there might be a population basis for this (as opposed to just being random)? For example, did Japanese lacquer workers (who used urushiol and presumably were exposed to a lot) insensitive? I know that mango and cashew harvesters routinely exhibit the dermatitis, so it wouldn't be an acquired immunity kind of thing. In fact, the opposite: doesn't it require an initial exposure, like other allergens? Jeff Worthington 20:57, 16 August 2005 (UTC)

• The figure came from the FAQ over at http://poisonivy.aesir.com/view/faq.html . Of course anything on the Internet without references is suspect (even my own editing), so I certainly don't mind anyone making changes. -Timvasquez 21:04, 16 August 2005 (UTC)

• When I was young, more than 50 years ago, I was completely immune to poison ivy, being able to rub the leaves over my face with no reaction. (Scared the hell out of my co-workers.) I don't remember being in contact with it since. Can I assume that the immunity persists, or should I, on the contrary, be even more cautious now? BTW, I have the vague impression that my immunity was not shared by my relatives. Too Old 04:06, 19 August 2005 (UTC)

• The claim in one of the article's sources contradicts this. Someone should check that out. Mo-Al 01:28, 7 July 2006 (UTC)

Terms

Could less US-POV terms for clothing be found, please? "Pants" to most people outside of the US means underwear, and the wording is nonsensical to anyone not familiar with its US meaning of trousers. The problem of usurhiol is far from unique to the USA - MPF 23:49, 16 August 2005 (UTC)

The causative agent, urushiol, is not spread once it has bound with a cell membrane, and it is not found in weeping blisters. Thus, once the oil and resin has been thoroughly washed from the skin, the rash is usually not contagious.

Often people will think that poison-ivy is spreading. In reality they're experiencing the rash at a slower pace in an area than they did in another area, giving the illusion that it is spreading.

Excessive scratching may result in secondary infection, commonly by staphylococcal and streptococcal species. These may require the use of antibiotics.

I removed the text in bold because that fact has already been stated. Blueaster 00:16, 19 August 2005 (UTC)

howto

I've already cleaned up the poison ivy and urushiol articles to take out their HOWTO-ness, but this one needs a lot of work. BIG BOLD DISCLAIMERS AND WARNINGS are not encyclopedic. Anaphylaxis isn't a perfect article, but I think it's a demonstration of how to give information on an important medical condition without resorting to step by step instructions. We need to phrase this article in terms of facts, not "should"s. Night Gyr 06:15, 9 April 2006 (UTC)

Disney World example

I would suggest that the Disney World example be cut from the article. It doesn't fit, and it seems to be unsourced. Agreed? Mo-Al 18:27, 22 June 2006 (UTC)

"Nearly Orgasmic Feeling?" ... ?

Can someone verify the "Treatment" description placed after "hot water" - nearly orgasmic feeling? Is this vandalism?

Sounds like B.S. to me, but I'm not an expert. (Besides, I don't see how you could verify whether something feels "nearly orgasmic".) Mo-Al 18:51, 25 June 2006 (UTC)

Well, I suppose I could verify it (most any relief could be compared to orgasms when suffering from a serious case), but I don't think it's necessarily the best turn of phrase for this article. SB Johnny 19:14, 25 June 2006 (UTC)

Okay, I rephrased it. Mo-Al 19:27, 25 June 2006 (UTC)

There is a certain amount of substance to that assertion. Came to this Wiki because I contracted Poison Ivy while searching for a golf ball in the woods - wanted to know what I am dealing with. When its itchy, try running REALLY hot water over the affected area during a shower - its crazy. 71.97.75.83 01:10, 13 November 2007 (UTC)

I'm familiar with this treatment and there's a basis for it -- something about heat triggering histamine release, so you essentially 'burn out' your ability to produce more for appx. 30 minutes. Also, coincidentally enough, the New Yorker just had an article on the neurological basis for itching in the latest issue (~July 2008) and there's apparently some evidence that the brain regions involved are those of compulsion and reward, as for drug use, sex, etc, so (as someone familiar with the sensation, who can understand where the initial author must've been coming from) maybe it's more of an insight than a stretch. O_o 64.252.196.209 (talk) 08:08, 29 June 2008 (UTC)

Changes

Made some big changes to this article after developing a, ah, "personal interest" in poison ivy-related articles (draw your own conclusions). As noted earlier, a great deal of the article read more like advice from WebMD; while is was mostly accurate, it wasn't encyclopedic in tone and was sometimes excessive in content -- WP:NOT a health guide, after all. I condensed the last few sections, mostly concerning treatment, into one, trying to preserve what seemed appropriate for an article here. The list of common treatments were removed, as it was too heavy on the advice side. Should read a little bit cleaner now. Tijuana Brass^¡Épa! 05:43, 27 June 2006 (UTC)

"CPE"?

Added a comment to the article wondering what "CPE" might mean in the "Mechanism" section. None of the articles on the CPE disambiguation page seem to fit. N6 16:13, 6 July 2006 (UTC)

Myths

In the myths section, it's not made entirely clear that the statements listed are false. (that's why I reworded it; though it didn't sound nice it was more clear.) Maybe someone should reword it better. Mo-Al 07:35, 9 July 2006 (UTC)

Is there a basis for putting Burrow's Solution / Al acetate in the "Myths?" It's not a magic bullet, but anecdotally, sometimes using it to dry the blisters can provide significant relief when even antihistamines aren't enough. I'd also like to know if there's a basis (or non-basis) for an assertion I've seen that Al acetate will actually bind urushiol. 64.252.196.209 (talk) 08:16, 29 June 2008 (UTC)

Mechanism

"Chemically, urushiol is harmless to humans, but when it bonds to skin cells it initiates a T-cell mediated immune response."

Isn't bonding and initiating reactions chemical? Harmless? Why not just: Urushiol will bond with skin cells resulting in a T-cell mediated immune response. I don't even know if that's true, so I hate to change anything. You'll decide.

I believe the meaning is that it is an allergic reaction: your own immune system identifies urushiol as an antigen and causes the inflammatory response. This is not a simple chemical reaction, although of course many chemical reactions are involved in the biological immune response. --Chinasaur 08:58, 26 February 2007 (UTC)

I've uploaded 6 pd photos, but don't know how to incorporate them

This is a rash from brief contact with poison sumac.

Day two A few fluid filled blisters, swelling, redness, itching.

Day five Swelling in the arm, fluid filled blisters, fluid that leaked from the skin. At this stage the blisters were easily broken by contact with the wound dressing.

Day seven: this picture was taken approximately 10 hours after beginning treatment with methylprednisolone.

Pictures are:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Urushiol-induced_contact_dermatitis_2_days_after_contact.jpg http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Urushiol-induced_contact_dermatitis_2_days_after_contact_side_view.jpg http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Urushiol-induced_contact_dermatitis_5_days_after_contact.jpg http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Urushiol-induced_contact_dermatitis_5_days_after_contact_blisters.jpg http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Urushiol-induced_contact_dermatitis_5_days_after_contact_closeup.jpg http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Urushiol-induced_contact_dermatitis_7_days_after_contact.jpg

topical steroid

It would be helpful to have more information about the pros and cons of treating a skin reaction site with steroid creams.-69.87.202.67 17:47, 26 April 2007 (UTC)

Blister fluid

This article needs a cross-section diagram of the skin, showing where the fluid accumulates to form a blister. What are the best ways to drain the blister? What are the pros and cons of doing this?-69.87.199.208 21:55, 30 April 2007 (UTC)

Zanfel

Zanfel Wash for Poison Ivy / Oak & Sumac, Dual-Action Formula
Ingredients: Polyethylene Granules , Sodium Lauroyl Sarcosinate , Nonoxynol-9 , C12-15 Pareth-9 , Disodium EDTA , Quaternium-15 , Carbomer 2% , Triethanolamine , Water
US$40/1-oz tube, quite expensive!-69.87.204.208 01:31, 3 May 2007 (UTC)

• Yeah, but I consider this stuff to be a cure. After seeing how it works, I always keep a tube of it around. -Rolypolyman 06:38, 25 July 2007 (UTC)

I think this section needs improvement. Solid scientific research is hard to come by online on this. From what I read online as to the effectiveness of this product most are personal claims coming from people posting how it worked or did not work for them. The studies that are cited in the section did not seem to be so "rigorous" based on reading the article referenced. Felix9x 10:27, 22 September 2007 (UTC)

Palm less sensitive

It seems like palms are less likely to get poison ivy than the back of the hand or other parts of the arm. Why?-69.87.200.24 23:31, 5 May 2007 (UTC)

I have poison ivy all over my palms right now, nothing on the back of my hands. I don't think there is anything real about this claim! Arak42 (talk) 14:32, 1 March 2008 (UTC)

It's supposed to be less likely to spread because the skin on palms and heels of feet are thicker. 24.63.15.143 (talk) 23:55, 20 July 2008 (UTC)

Myths, redux

The "Treatment" section ostensibly ends with a list of myths, but then actually presents a list of facts. (And FWIW, see previous comment from July 2006.) -- Gyrofrog (talk) 17:27, 3 July 2007 (UTC)

I just made a slight re-wording. -- Gyrofrog (talk) 17:29, 3 July 2007 (UTC)

Some things..

Ive heard Bleach to dry it, Fingernail polish to seal it, and of course Calamine lotion. R.L. Nieman 16:42, 16 September 2007 (UTC)

Some suggestions from my own experience

I've been dealing with this stuff down here in Texas, and I figured I'd share some of my own experiences in treating it, which are unencyclopedic but which I can say have worked for me and might have some bearing on revisions of this article.

(1) Scrub each major patch with Zanfel as soon as possible; the single most important thing is disociating the urushiol from your skin ASAP, and Zanfel is basically a $40/tube nuclear bomb for urushiol. Don't be surprised if Zanfel works only partially if more than 12-24 hours has passed, it's outstanding stuff but not a cure.

(2) Antihistamines are essential; I found Benadryl worked ok but made me too groggy, but Claritin (loratadine) seems to work equally well without the side effects. I skipped antihistimines one day and the itching definitely went up. Conversely, I've found the itching goes down dramatically about 30 minutes after taking Claritin.

(3) Wash anything that had initial contact with your hands the day you were exposed; this includes steering wheels, tools, clothes, etc, or you will set yourself up for reinfection.

(4) Avoid warm water. I guess maybe it works for some people but I've found keeping the parts cool and dry (except maybe for moisturizer to control skin erosion) will control the itch.

(5) Use Tecnu gel for any minor annoying areas, as it has topical antihistimine. I'm about to try some corticosteroids (topical triamcinolone) and will report on that if I can.

Repeated Exposure

Under Mechanism is "Since the skin reaction is an allergic one, people may develop an increasingly strong reactions after repeated exposures, or show no immune response on their first exposure, but show sensitivity on following exposures."

On page http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toxicodendron_diversilobum under Toxin, "Around 15%[1] to 30%[2] of people have no allergic response, but most if not all will become sensitized over time with repeated or more concentrated exposure to urushio."

This seems inconsistent. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 70.110.42.174 (talk) 03:26, 10 January 2008 (UTC) Of course if you have a big problem, don't take my advice; go see a doctor. -Rolypolyman (talk) 22:58, 6 December 2007 (UTC)

Treatment

Some of the treatment sections reads too much like an ad to me. Also looks like it could use some sources. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Kevink707 (talk • contribs) 20:31, 24 March 2008 (UTC)

There appears to be an edit war regarding the inclusion of a product called ItchyFree. I have removed the entire list (4 products in all), for two reasons: the article does not cite a reliable source about any of these products, and it is specific to the United States while Wikipedia is aimed at a worldwide readership. If these products merit inclusion in this article, then we need to cite a reliable source about their mechanism, efficacy, etc. (An example of "reliable source," in this case, might be a Consumer Reports study, as opposed to the manufacturer's website or promotional literatue). Thank you. -- Gyrofrog (talk) 22:32, 2 April 2008 (UTC)

urushiol vaccine

> No vaccine has been developed to counter urushiol symptoms

Hey! Urushiol is neither a bacteria nor a virus. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 206.53.16.148 (talk) 00:45, 21 May 2008 (UTC)

Contradiction

One section said that burning poison oak may not cause symptoms, while another section says it definitely does "these statements are TRUE". What gives? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 169.233.38.65 (talk) 04:43, 4 June 2008 (UTC)

Exposing yourself to the smoke is a very deadly experiment to try. You might get lucky. Or you might be promptly on your way to the hospital. Just imagine the lining of your lungs reacting to direct contact...-69.87.200.106 (talk) 22:02, 1 August 2008 (UTC)

Hot Water

I've used hot water many times. I've read that it uses up all of the histamine in your skin. Works for me.

--64.179.113.48 (talk) 17:26, 27 June 2008 (UTC)

animals

What animals other than humans do or don't have this vulnerability? It is said that there are two kinds of goats that especially love to eat up poison ivy!-69.87.200.106 (talk) 22:06, 1 August 2008 (UTC)