Well, here's a warning....

Nurses General Nursing

Published

What's that saying about vanity? A few weeks ago, I went to the dermatologist hoping for a chemical peel. No such luck, of course, but she did prescribe Retin A for the sun damage. I KNOW about sun exposure and Retin A. But sometimes connecting the dots just doesn't happen with me. We're leaving on vacation soon so I went to have my eyebrows waxed. It seemed to hurt quite a bit and continue for quite awhile.

Retin A + hot wax = blisters.

But the eyebrows are nicely delineated amidst the blisters. I guess it'll be peeling badly by the time we embark.:lol2:

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OUCH Pannie! Thanks for the warning, hope you feel better soon!

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Ouch. Poor thing.

Just out of curiosity were you using the Retin-A below the eyebrow arch? I thought it wasn't supposed to be that close to the eye. I've used it below, never above.

Just curious.

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Specializes in Case Management.

pannie,

I am sure you are aware of this but I just wanted to stress to you that you should not use retin-a while in the sun.

It can cause very painful sunburn with open blisters and lots of pain.

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Specializes in ICU, CVICU.

Vitamen E oil my friend!

The same thing happened to me and the waxer totally blamed me as if EVERYONE KNOWS you aren't supposed to use Retin-A while waxing- sheesh!

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gr8rn-that's what I meant about "not connecting the dots". The dermatologist warns you about sunlight. My girlfriend saw me and she's had the same reaction cyberkat - "that's just above your eyelid and you didn't put Retin A THERE did you?" I didn't. We're now thinking it might really have been the temperature of the wax. Maybe a malfunction of the equipment? It's one or the other since all our friends have gone there for years and nothing like this has happened before. Haha! She took my candy thermometer to stop and check the temp of the wax and we don't even know what it's supposed to be!! LOL!! But we love the stylist and sure don't want her to get sued.

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We're on our way to dinner and I'll pick up some Vit E oil on the way home. THANKS!

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In the salon where I used to work, we had a large Q&A section regarding medications and I do belive Retin-A was one of the ones mentioned. We in the medical field all know that some topical meds have systemic effects, so it's not far fetched that even though the OP did not use Retin-A below her eyebrows, there is still the chance of adverse effects.

I would lay blame to the waxer, too, for not doing a little clent education. Yes, believe it or not, cosmetologists are taught to do that, at least in my school we were. Most acne treatments will preclude a person from getting any sort of facial waxing, as will a peel, alpha-hydroxy acid treatments, accutane, alcohol, vasodilators, micro dermabrasion, tanning within 72 hours of waxing, benzoyl peroxide (ie Stridex, Clearacil), salacylic acid (Propa pH).

About the temperature of the wax, the stylist (I hope) was taught in school to test the wax temperature on his/her wrist immediately prior to beginning the waxing. If it's too hot, the center of the wax pot is cooler than what is near the edges. If it's too hot from the center, then the client will just have to wait. I'd rather have a client upset about the wait than have blisters appear a short time later.

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