Get rid of?

So I've been usin Panoxyl and such to get rid of my acne. My acne is not severe or any of that sort. I would rank it as normal. But once I used the Panoxyl bar to wash my face twice a day, my face would swell up and I would come out of the shower with big blotches or red spots all over my face. Its in my forhead,cheeks,upper lip and chin. I went to the dermatologis and he told me that i had a reaction from a ingridient that is in panoxyl. and he suscribed me Cloderm cream 0.1%. My question is, will this help get rid of my redness all over my face or will it stay permenatly. And how long will it take till I see results?

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,
The symptoms are suggestive of irritant contact dermatitis. Irritant dermatitis, the most common type of contact dermatitis, involves inflammation resulting from contact with acids, alkaline materials such as soaps and detergents, cosmetics, or other chemicals.

Avoid using any lotions and creams over the face for the meantime. Wash your face with a mild cleanser with moisturizing properties like Cetaphil. Pat your face dry. Then apply a good hypoallergenic moisturizer over the area and see if this improves. If the symptoms still persist then you can apply mild steroid like dermacort.

If the irritation persists then please get it evaluated from a dermatologist. It is very difficult to precisely confirm a diagnosis without examination and investigations and the answer is based on the medical information provided. For exact diagnosis, you are requested to consult your dermatologist. I sincerely hope that helps. Take care and please do keep me posted on how you are doing.