rash & white spots after tanning

[kendall2012]

So just recently I started going tanning again & I started to see a small rash on my shoulders. Then I started seeing white spots on my stomache all over, & just recently I got more of the little bumps right below my breasts. I asked the tanning place and they said it was because of the tanning lotion I use ( bombshell & its tingly. ) they also said it was because I haven't tanned in awhile. But i'm almost positive that's not it because I went tanning last winter, and used the same exact stuff and never seen anything. Im not sure if its because I go to a different place and maybe something on the beds ? I'm not sure, since Im not really allergic to anything that I know of. Help ?

[kendall2012]

I talked to one of my friends that used to work at a tanning bed and uses the same tanning lotion as me. The same thing happened to her & said it was some kind of fungis, there was a type of lotion that you can buy to help get rid of this. I never bought the lotion but the bumps stopped coming after tanning but I still get the white spots.

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,
These spots can be due to tinea versicolor. For tinea versicolor, Selenium sulphide lotion can be applied for around 10-15 minutes, rinsed off and re-applied daily for about a week. It is less messy and preferably easy to use than the Selsun and Ketoconazole shampoos which needs to applied on the patches of affected skin after an evening bath, left to dry the whole night and washed off the next morning. For widespread or stubborn infections, itraconazole tablets have shown good results in curative aspects, but avoid its interaction with other drugs like antacids, astemizole, phenytoin and rifampicin. Most patient think the treatment has not worked if their pale patches do not disappear straight away. They should be warned in advance that the patches will take a long time to disappear and the treatment does not equate with disappearance.

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.