sun blisters

After being out in the sun I got a pretty bad sunburn on my chest area and within a day or two a red rash and blisters had appeared.  A blister did break open and get a bit infected.  I started putting neosporin on it and within a week it was almost healed.  There was one last blister that was a bit hard to the touch and the redness of the rash went away.  I went back into the ocean and was in for an hour or two surfing.  The next day, the same rash and blisters have come back only smaller than before.  Im being very careful so the blisters do not pop.  Im staying out of the ocean and putting an organic aloe lotion on it.  It does itch a little but not enough to drive me crazy.  I am a little scared that it could be something else?  Can you help?  I have looked at many photos on the web and it seems to be a sun blister but have you ever known of one to come back?

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,
It looks like solar dermatitis or sun burns. Apply a good sunscreen with minimum spf 30 atleast half an hour before going out in the sun. You can take non-sedating antihistamines such as Cetirizine or Loratadine(Claritin). Short courses of oral cortisone or steroids are taken for short periods (one to three days) to settle more severe symptoms.  You can apply antibiotic cream such as Neosporin or silver sulfadiazine (Silvadene).It will prevent infection and help in fast healing.

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 doctor. I sincerely hope that helps. Take care and please do keep me posted on how you are doing.