Skin red after a month

Hello Doctor, I was out at the beach about a month and a week ago ( May 9th) and got terribly burnt. I was so sun burnt that I pretty much peeled my whole frontal body. I am of Chinese descent and I usually tan so I am surprised that this happened. Anyways, everywhere on my body seems to be healed now except for my chest area.

It has been about a month and a week since my sunburn and the skin on my chest is still red, especially after a shower or putting on moisturizer. I also started to break out in the burn area, which I never use to get acne there.
I went to my dermotologist a few days ago in regards to my break out ( cause I didn't notice the redness at that time), she gave me minocycline for my face acne and my chest, and also clindoxyl gel for spot treatment. I also bought proactiv body wash and lotion but so far seems to be a bit irritating so I stopped.

my question is, does a sun burn redness last that long? I am putting aloe vera on it for the time being, I am planning on going back to my dermotologist in regards to the redness, but for now, should I contiune doing the aloe vera on the red area, and doing spot treatments on the acne?

I am pretty worried because this never happen to me so please if you can give me some explanation on why this is happening? Thank you so much doctor.

[Jasmina Jankicevic, MD, MSc, CCRP]

Welcome to Dermatology Expert Forum.  Thank you for your post.

Skin may turn red in as little as half an hour after sun exposure. The burn continues to develop for 24 to 72 hours, followed by peeling skin. Some redness, peeling and itching may continue for several weeks. In addition, it is possible to develop an allergy to sun. Chest area is one of predilection skin sites for such a disorder (especially for Polymorphic Light Eruption).

For any reaction to sun exposure, the most important rule is not to expose skin to sunlight again, especially until the skin is completely healed. It is usually recommended to avoid any contact irritants or potential contact allergens by not applying any topical products on affected skin. Your dermatologist might decide to prescribe you some topical corticosteroids.

Finally, cumulative effect of sun exposure results in photoaging. Photoaged skin is changed and not as resilient especially when affected by other potent factors. Best prevention is sun protection.


Wishing You Optimal Health,
Dr. Jasmina Jankicevic