Throughout a very traumatic time, I had a flare-up of perioral dermatitis (PD), a scaly pink rash, to the appropriate of my mouth. It is one thing I had by no means even heard of, and undoubtedly was not the run-of-the-mill dry pores and skin that I assumed it to be when it first cropped up.

It seems that perioral dermatitis is considerably frequent each across the mouth and underneath the nostril. After I posted about it on my Instagram Tales, a number of individuals messaged me to say that they, too, have skilled the pores and skin situation. Sadly for me, every of them had fairly totally different recommendation for the way to deal with it. Some informed me to exfoliate with alpha hydroxy acids (AHAs), others mentioned to make use of solely essentially the most mild skin-care merchandise. Many mentioned a topical antibiotic cream was all that may work.

For one thing so frequent, why is there a lot confusion? I talked to consultants to determine the way to deal with the rash round my mouth known as perioral dermatitis, which could possibly be dry and itchy and is usually mistaken for eczema across the mouth and nostril.

Meet the consultants:

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What’s periorial dermatitis?

What’s periorial dermatitis, precisely? Properly, for starters, it’s a facial rash that normally reveals up across the mouth, Corey L. Hartman, a board-certified dermatologist in Birmingham, Alabama, has informed Attract. It could pop up in different areas as effectively — across the nostril, chin, even the outer components of the eyelids, and cheeks — and normally presents as pink and bumpy, so it might be mistaken for different pores and skin circumstances, like zits or rosacea. Not like zits, it may be itchy, though that is not all the time the case, so when you have pink bumps round your mouth it is best to see a dermatologist who can assist diagnose.

The rash is just not contagious, and it is not completely clear what causes it — however it might be that one thing is irritating the pores and skin (moisturizer, and even toothpaste) or that you just’re allergic to an ingredient in your skincare. Or it it might be a response to longtime use of a corticosteroid remedy, says Dr. Hartman. Typically, the bumps will be puss crammed, provides Joshua Zeichner, MD, a board-certified dermatologist in New York Metropolis. I

What causes perioral dermatitis?

“Regardless of being frequent, we nonetheless don’t perceive why perioral dermatitis develops,” Zeichner explains. In line with him, there are various theories, together with using topical cortisone lotions, fluorinated toothpaste, heavy skin-care merchandise, bronchial asthma inhalers, and — yep — stress.