From Take Care of Yourself - A Consumer's Guide to Medical Care, by Donald M. Vickery, M.D. and James F. Fries, M.D., Addison-Wesley, 1977 (7th printing). p. 132, Poison Ivy and Oak:       Poison Ivy and Poison Oak need little introduction.  The itching skin lesions which follow contact with these and other plants of the Rhus family are the most common example of a larger category of skin problems known as contact dermatitis.  Contact dermatitis simply means that something has been applied to the skin which has caused the skin to react to it.  An initial exposure is necessary to sensitize the patient; a subsequent exposure will result in an allergic reaction if the plant oil remains in contact with the skin for several hours.  The resulting rash begins after 12 to 48 hours delay and persists for about two weeks.  Contact may be indirect, from pets, contaminated clothing, or smoke from burning Phus plants.  It can occur during any season. Home Treatment:      There are many approaches to the treatment of poison ivy.  The best is to avoid the plants, which are hazardous even in the winter when they have dropped their leaves.  Next best is to remove the plant oil from the skin as soon as possible.  If the oil has been on the skin for less than six hours, thorough cleansing with strong soap, repeated three times, will usually prevent reaction.      Many physicians recommend cool compresses of Burrow's Solution (Domeboro, Bur-Veen, Bluboro) or Aveeno Bath(one cup to a tub full of water).  The old standby, calamine lotion, is sometimes of help in early lesions, but may spread the plant oil which is causing the irritation in the first place.  Be sure to cleanse the skin, as above, even if you are too late to prevent the rash entirely.  Another useful method of obtaining symptomatic relief is the use of a hot bath or hot shower. Heat releases histamine, the substance in the cells of the skin which causes the intense itching.  Therefore, a hot shower or bath will cause intense itching as the histamine is released.  The heat is gradually increased to the maximum tolerable and continued until the itching has subsided.  This process will deplete the cells of histamine and the patient will often obtain eight hours of relief from the itching.  This method has the advantage of not requiring frequent application of ointments to the lesions and is a good way to get some sleep at night. Poison ivy or oak will persist for the same length of time despite the medication.  If secondary bacterial infection occurs, healing will be delayed; hence scratching is not helpful.  Cut the nails to avoid damage to the skin through scratching. Roni Burrows                    |        ThE         This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it        |   uSuAL           Arizona State University        |       DisCLAiMers Chemical,Bio,&Mat'ls Engineering| aPplY Date: Fri, 4 Dec 92 12:47:28 -0800 From: Kristann Orton < This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it Subject: Re: [l/m 4/15/92] Oak/Ivy              Distilled Wisdom (18/28) XYZ I use a fabric soap called Fels Neptha (sp?) after exposure.  It was suggested in a first aide class my mom took, and it works great for getting the oils off your skin. Date: Fri, 18 Jun 93 21:38:25 PDT From: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it (John Platt) Subject: Poison Oak, accumulated wisdom    I went to my dermatologist when I got some poison oak.. He said, 0.5% Hydrocortisone on Poison Oak is like trying to put out a forest fire by pissing on it.   Then, he gave me some halobetasol propionate (topical cream, by pre_script_ion only)... Within a few hours, the itchiness went away and stayed away with repeated application. No mind-altering systemic steroids. He called this stuff the tactical nuclear weapon against poison oak. I highly recommend it.                    ^ A                   s / r                                m /   c                             h /     h                          t /       i                       i /         t                    r /           e                 o /             c              g /               t           l /                 u        A /                   r         <_____________________ e                   Language Date: Thu, 18 Nov 1993 19:42:40 -0500 (EST) From: Jerry M. Wright < This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it Subject: Poison ivy I'd like to add my $0.02 worth to the poison ivy lore.  I've come across some stuff called Tecnu and it has worked quite well both immediately after exposure and after appearance of a rash.  It is formulated to dissolve the ivy oils and allow you to rinse them off your skin.  Even after the rash has appeared, the oils remain causing further irritation and will spread.  One hiker this year came up with a really extensive rash on her forearm at the end of the day.  We used the stuff and it stopped the rash from spreading and substantially reduced the itching.  A couple of other experiences with it have had similar results - just remember to follow the label directions.  I don't know the distribution area but I've seen the stuff in most drug stores in the DC area and the company is _base_d in Oregon.  (BTW the number for information on the product is 1-800-itching) ************************************************************ This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it Sometimes it is necessary to grab the bull by the tail and face the situation. ************************************************************ Date: Fri, 19 Nov 93 13:06:09 PST From: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it (Barry T. Drake)   Tecnu says not to apply it to broken skin, which I did anyway when parts of the skin near my wrists blistered and oozed.  The Tecnu dried the blisters up immediately, and there is no scarring of the skin.   Tecnu's main ingredients are propylene glycol and polyethylene glycol, which makes me wonder if anti-freeze wouldn't help if one were in a remote area (don't some types of anti-freeze contain those chemicals?).