I need to know what kind of blister I'm dealing with on my face.

Hi there! I am dealing with a bit of a problem here on my face. For the past 2 days I've had this blister on the side of my face, a little bit close to my mouth. It all started when I was using this facial cleanser with exfoliating scrubs by Clean and Clear for a while. I noticed that sometimes my skin would feel dry on some parts of my face, especially near my mouth and chin. Afterwards, I started noticing the dry parts of my face were getting red and bumpy. Then as it turned out I ended up with a blister. Now I'm almost certain that I have this blister because of the chemical reaction to the facial cleanser but as I was looking it up on the internet, I got information from different sites saying how blisters can occur from possible herpes. I've looked at all the symptoms and I haven't experienced any of them. The blister doesnt feel very irritating all though sometimes it gets a little itchy.

Now, I want to make sure that this blister is only from a chemical reaction and nothing with an STD. I am 21 years old and I am sexually active. I've been tested for HIV and STD's in the past and so has my boyfriend. We were both tested negative of all sexual diseases. I really need to know why this blister developed and what I need to do to treat before I jump to any scary conclusions.

Thanks!

[Dr Santos]

Hi,

One differential could be perioral dermatitis, a common facial skin problem in adult women. It presents with groups of itchy or tender small red bumps around the mouth and they spare the skin bordering the lips. It may also develop on the sides of the chin, upper lip and cheeks. The surrounding skin may be pink, and the skin surface often becomes dry and flaky. The rash is probably induced by: using soap or a soap-free cleanser, face creams, and even moisturisers, cream cleansers, make-up foundation and sunscreens.  The use of  topical steroid creams or ointments appear to be the most frequent cause.  Try to discontinue applying all face creams including topical steroids, cosmetics and sunscreens. Wash the face with warm water alone while the rash is present. A course of oral antibiotics may be prescribed by your dermatologist. This condition responds well to treatment but has a tendency to recur. I also recommend that you have this evaluated further to rule out other causes such as herpes simplex virus infection, which also presents with oral blisters.

Take care and do keep us posted.