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I am on aldara and i am a male. I have been taking it
Sent to Health Experts October 16 04:06 AM

I am on aldara and i am a male. I have been taking it for about a week. Now i have a red area near but not on the area that i apply the cream that has blisters. I'm concern because it looks similar to herpes. Should I be concerned?

 

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Male , Age: 27

Already Tried:
It just turned to blisters today and i have applied neosporon.

Customer (name blocked for privacy)
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October 16 4:46 AM (40 minutes and 22 seconds later)
         
ACCEPTEDCheck Mark

Hello,

One of the common side effects of Aldara is redness of the skin with the formation of blisters. There may be reddening or swelling of the skin around which the cream is applied.

There may even be itching and burning of the skin with scab formation over the blisters. These look very similar to the blisters seen in herpes infection. So you need to be tested to see if what you have is a side-effect of Aldara or is actually a herpes infection.

Please consult your doctor as you may need to reduce the number of times you are applying the cream. If a large area of the skin is involved, you may even need to stop the cream for some days and then restart when the effects have diminished.

I hope this helps.

Let me know if you need more input. If not, please click on the green"Accept" button on this page. A positive rating and adding a bonus will be warmly appreciated.

 



Edited by Dr.M.D.Mazumdar on October 16 2006 at 4:48 AM

Experienced in the management of Pregnancy,Infertility,Menopause and all problems in Pregnancy and Gynecology
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Dr.M.D.Mazumdar, MD -- Doctor (MD) -- 100% Positive Feedback on 3525 Health Accepts
Fifteen years experience in active private practice in Obst & Gynecology
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October 16 4:56 AM (9 minutes and 28 seconds later)
         
Reply to Dr.M.D.Mazumdar, MD's Post: Hello and thank you very much. About 2 days ago I had redness near the area where I apply the cream. So i dedided to apply a larger amount than normal on a bandaid to see if if changes my small wart and if it helped with the rash. But as the day has gone on today this rash turned to blisters and it is rather painful. And of course looks like herpes. So I have become concerned. I know the best thing is to have a doctor look at it. But would it be safe to say that it is more than likely caused by the cream?
Customer (name blocked for privacy)
Info Request
October 16 6:27 AM (1 hour and 31 minutes and 12 seconds later)
         
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Hello,

Yes, it is more likely to have been casued by the cream, especially since you have applied a larger than normal amount. Aldara is not supposed to be applied on normal healthy skin and it is likely that in your case, some of it has been rubbed on the skin.

It would be a good idea to stop applying the cream and wait for 1 week . If the blisters heal without much pain then it is probably due to the cream. If the blisters break down into small painful ulcers, then it is likely to be herpes. You can start reapplying the cream after healing of the blisters.

If you see that the blisters are getting infected, do apply an ointment like Bacitracin over them.

 



Experienced in the management of Pregnancy,Infertility,Menopause and all problems in Pregnancy and Gynecology
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Dr.M.D.Mazumdar, MD -- Doctor (MD) -- 100% Positive Feedback on 3525 Health Accepts
Fifteen years experience in active private practice in Obst & Gynecology
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October 16 3:40 PM (9 hours and 12 minutes and 46 seconds later)
         
Reply to Dr.M.D.Mazumdar, MD's Post: Great that is actually what I decided to do. I stopped applying the cream and this morning the rash looks smaller and the blisters are starting to scab over. So well see what happens. I really appreciate your answer and I hope my positive response helps. Jeff J
Customer (name blocked for privacy)
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