my brother has POISON SUMAC / IVY / OAK....!!??

Question

My brother has poison ivy or something like that. He gets this a lot and so this isn't his first time, but this is just really bad

It's mostly on his face, and his eye is closing up.... and it just looks really bad.

ANY IDEAS ON HOW I CAN HELP?

oh yea.. how do I not get it. He's around me 24/7...so.. =/

Answer 1

He is obviously allergic to the plants sap. You mentioned specifically his face.

More than likely he has walked through a path that has the plants next to it and his pants have brushed up against it. He then most likely wiped the sweat from his face with his hand after he had wiped his pants too.

The best thing is to treat it with calamine lotion. Dab it on with a cotton ball. DO NOT wipe it on, that will just spread the sap and make more inflammation.

As for his eye soothing cold packs would be best to reduce the swelling and and anti histamine to help too. Get him to a doctor if the swelling gets to bad.

After he recovers from this bout with what ever it is, have him get allergy shots to help desensitize him for future encounters.

Answer 2

Your brother needs to go to the doctor ASAP. This is very serious. The doctor will most likely prescribe steriods to treat it since it is on his face and his eye closing.

Since you mentioned he gets it a lot he might be interested in reading the information on the following link.

http://www.babymd.net/poisonivy.htm

You can not get poison ivy from him. The following is from the link posted above "Is Poison Ivy contagious?

No. The “oil” produced in the skin blisters is just body fluid. Your body has no means of duplicating the Rhus Oil. Once your exposed to the chemical, you will break out over a 3-day period. The heaviest exposure usually breaks out first, but you will still get new lesions for up to 3 days from a single exposure. This is why many people think it spreads, but it doesn’t. If you’re still breaking out after 3 days, then you’re still being exposed to the oil and therefore you should check shoes, belts, toys, etc, that could have the oil on it. "

Good luck poison ivy is a real pain.

Answer 3

That is serious enough to warrant a doctor visit. If not available at once, go to ER ASAP.
On his face? That crap can go internally, bad news.

Do not use any towel that he uses, or touch his clothing. Keep your distance.