The skin can become red and painful with sunburn and it feels hot on touching. It can appear after few hours of sun exposure and it can take few weeks to fade. There can be increased complications and skin diseases with sunburn due to intense sun exposure. There can be wrinkled and dry skin, actinic keratoses, liver spots and skin cancer with sunburn. It also includes melanoma. You can avoid sunburn and other such conditions providing protection to your skin especially when you are outdoors. There are several treatments and home remedies available if you get sunburn. These treatments can relieve pain and speed healing of skin.
Causes
Sunburn can be due to sun exposure with ultraviolet light which is wavelength of sunlight in short range which can not be seen by human eye. UVA, UVB and UVC are three wavelength bands of UV light. The UV light can be produced by commercial tanning beds and tanning lamps which can cause sunburn. The production of melanin in the skin is increased when you are exposed to the UV light. This melanin is found in epidermis in the form of dark pigment and normal skin color is due to melanin. The deeper layers of skin are protected by extra melanin which can create darker color of tan. Suntan is the way through UV rays is blocked by the body to prevent skin damage and sunburn. The amount of melanin production can be determined genetically. The melanin is not produced enough by many people to protect skin. There can be skin burn with UV light which can bring pain, swelling and redness. The sunburn can also be on the cloudy or hazy day because 90% of UV rays pass through these clouds. The UV rays are reflected off ice, snow, water, sand and other reflective materials.
Symptoms
The major symptoms of sunburn include:
- Redness of pinkness
- Warm and hot feeling on skin touching
- Tenderness or pain
- Blisters containing
- Swelling
- Fever, headache and fatigue
The sunburn can be on any part of the body including scalp, earlobes and lips. The eyes are extremely sensitive to the ultraviolet rays of sun and there can be sunburn to the eyes as well. There can be pain and gritty feelings in the sunburned eyes. The sunburn symptoms normally appear within few hours of the sun exposure. It will take a day or more for the severity of sunburn. The body can start healing within few days and there will be peeling on the top layer of skin. There will be irregular color on the skin temporarily with irregular patterns.
When to see a doctor
You can contact your doctor if there is blistering on large area of the body and there is high fever, confusion, nausea, extreme pain or chills due to sunburn. You must contact doctor if there is not response to the at home care. If there is infection then you should seek medical care. The sign of infection include increased swelling, increased pain, yellow drainage and red streaks.
