Lehigh Valley Hospital: When It Matters Most
lvh.org home page Careers at LVH Education @ LVH For Professionals working with LVH
Find a Doctor
Health Care Services
Patients & Visitors
Quality Results
Healthy You
Community
Classes & Events
Health Encyclopedia
Research
Giving to LVH
LVH News
Healthy You Tip!
Home > Healthy You > Healthy You Tip! > Poison Ivy? Start with Cold Wet Compresses

Poison Ivy? Start with Cold Wet Compresses

Poison ivy in summer —Leaves come in clusters of three. Some (but not all) leaves are notched. New leaves are shiny and reddish, mature leaves are dull green.

The day before you enjoyed a day of gardening. Now you've got a fiercely itchy rash. Chances are it's poison ivy. How can you relieve that itch? "Use cold wet compresses on the rash several times a day," says family physician Gina Fitzsimmons, D.O. Other tips include taking cool baths with colloidal oatmeal (Aveeno), using topical steroid creams or calamine lotion, or taking oral antihistamines like Benadryl to help you sleep at night.

Need a family physician? Call 610-402-CARE.

Services You May Need
Plants That Bite
Infectious Diseases


This page last updated 9/5/08 05:44 PM
ARTICLE TOOLS:

email this article to a friend print this article    Del.icio.us   Stumble It!






hon cod ©2008 Lehigh Valley Hospital and Health Network
LVH Info Line: 610-402-CARE
Cedar Crest & I-78, P.O. Box 689, Allentown, PA 18105-1556

Lehigh Valley Hospital has campuses in Allentown and Bethlehem, Pa. and serves the Pennsylvania communities of Easton, Doylestown, Quakertown, Hazelton, Lehighton, Perkasie, Pottstown, Pottsville, Reading, Scranton, Wilkes Barre, Stroudsburg, and the Poconos and also Phillipsburg and Flemington, N.J., and western New Jersey. You don't have to travel to Philadelphia or New York for quality health care.

 
Increase the Size of Text by clicking here. Descrease the Size of Text by clicking here Email this story to family and friends. Print this story formatted for your printer.