Contact Dermatitis Care

Contact Dermatitis Care in Central Massachusetts and Beyond

If you have red, scaly, itchy skin, you may have contact dermatitis. Contact dermatitis is the rash that forms when something contacts your skin and causes irritation. Experts at UMass Memorial Health provide a precise diagnosis and personalized treatment plan to help you feel and look your best.

What Is Contact Dermatitis? 

Contact dermatitis happens when you touch something that damages your skin. There are two types of contact dermatitis:

• Irritant contact dermatitis: This condition happens when irritants, such as solvents, soaps, acids or bases, damage your skin. 
• Allergic contact dermatitis: Your immune system reacts to chemicals, such as poison ivy, cosmetic products, jewelry or baby wipes.

More than 3,000 chemicals have been reported to cause allergic contact dermatitis, and thousands more cause irritant contact dermatitis.

How to Diagnose Contact Dermatitis

UMass Memorial dermatologists diagnose contact dermatitis with a patch test. This test includes a customized panel of test allergens that we apply to your back. It helps determine if your rash is caused by an allergy to natural or artificial chemicals you come in contact with.

To do the test:

1. We use hypoallergenic tape to secure 90 or more patches to your back. 
2. You leave the patches on for a little less than a week. During that time, your back can’t get wet. 
3. On the final day of the procedure, we collect the test to see what types of substances you are allergic to.  

 Contact Dermatitis Treatment

The best and safest treatment for contact dermatitis is to avoid the allergic or irritant substance. There are also several prescription medications that can improve the symptoms of contact dermatitis. Some are topical medications (rubbed on the skin), and some are systemic (like an oral medicine). Your team works with you to figure out the best medication for your needs.