Bandaid allergic reactions

I have had Multiple Chemical Sensitivities for over 30 years of my life.......and for the most part have found ways to manage it. I too was perplexed with a seemingly new reaction to band aid adhesives within the last year. And pretty severe like others are reporting.......not just itchy and goes away but like a chemical burn where the adhesive seems to actually blister the skin.   It occurs in all areas of body, but worse in thin skin areas. Not sure about propylene glycol and will look into it. But I do know that my known triggers for me include nitrile plastic gloves (not latex!) and just about all the aldehyde and formic acid chemical derivitives.  Also FYI, I am now thinking that i am experiencing a mild form of reaction to paper and shipping tape adhesives that I didn't think was a reaction until putting 2 and 2 together..............after working with a lot of tape my fingers crack and sometimes my lips burn.  And here's the kicker.....that is also what I first noticed about my nitrile reaction until it got progressively worse.   I have not found a band aid I can tolerate, but notice a couple brands I have not tried in these postings and will see if I can maybe order some through the internet somehow.  The expensive ones I got at the health food store were the worst!   I do get mad that manufactureres don't post the basic chemical components of these sorts of products.   Good luck, everyone!

One week ago, I had knee surgery to repair tears in the miniscus. Not having bandaids wide enough to cover the surgery site securely, I used a surgical pad and secured it with waterproof tape. The areas where the tape was touching began burning and hurting about 20 minutes after applying it, so I gently pulled it off. Didn't matter how gentle I was - one area of skin blistered immediately and now hurts worse than my knee! No more waterproof tape! I'm applying Neosporin and a gauze pad to it, and now using a surgical pad for the knee wounds, wrapped with rolled gauze and "Hurt Free Wrap," that sticks to itself, not your skin.

I would recommend rolled gauze for any wound/surgical/test site, then the hurt-free wrap. The wrap also comes now in "latex free." I feel like a lumpy snowman, but it's so worth it not to have skin tears, burns, or blisters! I'm hoping the Neosporin and gauze pad start helping this blistered area to heal!

I found this site after having a severe reaction to band-aids. I went and had a lump removed from my back and had 4 stitches put in after. it was healing fine until about 2-3 days after when I developed very red, blisterin, oozing, rash in the shape of a rectangle (the shape of bandaid). It was itchy and I would scratch it and it would cut my skin. It was terrible! I did not realize this was from a band-aid so I went to the urgent care on a Saturday and they told me I had a staph infection! they put me on Keflex which did nothing. I went to the doctor today to get the stitches out and he said it was an allergic reaction to the band-aid. he put me on a Steroid, another very powerful antiobiotic (Bactrim), Zantac and Zyrtec. Not sure I need all these meds?? I started them today and will see how it works. I may stop them all and stay on the antiboitic so I do not develop any further infection.
I have NEVER had any kind of reaction before, which is strange. I see Betts929 above posted it may be a beta-blocker she is taking that is causing her sensitivity. That made me wonder too, as I was put on a beta blocker about 6 mos ago. I am still stunned and what a mess a band-aid has made on my back. It looks awful and very ugly! I have a Christmas party this coming weekend and I bought a v-back dress a month ago to wear! Why did this have to happen now????? FRUSTRATED!!!

I can completely relate!! I know what you mean by Bandaid tattoo..

The tape they use at the doctors leaves a red shape of wherever they put it on me. Like it burned it.

When I used to use bandaids (today I use only liquid "bandaids"), whatever I put it on.. left the bandaid outline in red and blisters and took longer to heal than whatever I was originally covering with a bandaid. Logic told me to stop using bandaids when I just increased my healing time with a whole new problem.

Its a weird allergy to me.

God bless everyone in this thread for sharing your experience. I have just had a crying fit, a grown woman who is in my mid-forties. For over a week, I have been getting oozing welts and applying band aids to contain the bleeding. I have to work so what else could I do? I am afraid the blood would come through the gauze.

It all started out like this...I got a weird boil thing on my stomach (it happens). I secretly covered it up and kept waiting for it to heal. When it need to be covered due to opening up, I used a band aid. I got 2 welts right away, one on either side. So I covered them up with band aids. If I had known what was going on, I would have just winged it with gauze once the bleeding went down. but I kept going with band aids. I tried smaller ones and bigger ones. More and more welts. Some are skin shaped and raised, like a hive. I sometimes get watery under the ends of the bandaid..then a pink wound, like a crescent. It does not matter how slowly I pull the bandaid off. It just does this on it's own. So now I have a fairly large area of this mess. I came home from work and just fell apart. I felt like it was my fault for not knowing what was going on and it fricking hurts and itches and burns. I use neosporin which burns but then makes it feel better. My square area of welts now is oozing on to my pajama bottoms but that okay, I can sleep like that, it is contained from the sheets.

I just wrote my boss an e-mail saying I had a bad allergic reaction without going into too much detail since i am not sure I will be in tomorrow. I am just going to see my doctor tomorrow and get it looked at, in case I need antibiotics or something.

It is very comforting to read what this is. I am pretty certain I am allergic to band aids on my stomach. Oddly, I can use them on my arms and legs. But the baby skin on my stomach area just makes welts.

I always have had skin issues (my skin breaks out on my inner thighs when I get waxed and freaks out the lady at the salon...but it goes away in 2 days and doesn't bleed). So I think it may be genetic. But then I am on 2 high blood pressure medications and I just wonder if those have anything to do with it also.

Thanks again for sharing everyone!

I had to add my story as well. I have chronic pain and am generally sensitive to many things in life, so I feel like I'm the canary in the mine shaft so to speak. (I was very resilient and healthy as a child, and did not have ongoing pain and such until high school, ten years ago).

A couple of years ago I also started reacting to bandaids. I definitely think something was changed in the formula around that time.

It started with just getting pink dots on my skin along the edges of the adhesive part. I noticed them when I pulled the bandaid off, but they didn't hurt and quickly went away, so I didn't worry about it. Later, the dots grew into a solid line with a dotted edge pointing in towards the center of the bandaid adhesive. It began to itch and be painful, but itch more than anything else. Eventually I got pink spots everywhere the adhesive had been. about a year ago, it began scabbing over, as the first post described.

For me it does not usually bleed. But it hurts and itches, and after a couple of days it scabs over. I have scars from bandaids that last much longer than the scabs from the original wound; and the strange thing is that it never even bled at the scar spot. This happens on some parts of my body, but not others, some parts of my back but not others, some parts of my arms, but not others. I don't know yet if there are only a couple of specific spots that always are sensitive -- but it seems to me that it moves around. If I bleed ongoing or need to get some medicine to stay on for a while so it can soak in, I often wear a bandaid for a couple of hours and then take it off. I did this twice with my elbow this week, and had no reaction.

When I have had a recent reaction, I skip the bandaid and wrap the wound in paper towels. Gauze would probably also work. By checking on the bandaid a little while after it is applied, I can moniter whether or not it is reacting this time. My body is too sensitive to too many things (and not enough of them are discovered yet), so I can't just perfectly avoid the offending things every time.

One thing I did notice though: My reaction to bandaids first began with some "No Latex" bandaids my husband got from a promotional at work. They were some kind of otherwise un-labeled generic. At first only latex free bandaids were an issue, but now it seems to be all kinds of bandaids, just not all of the time. But, as I said, I have had painful itching and burning and scabs and scars... so I definitely think something new (and bad for us on here) is being used in the adhesive world.

One last thing: I called one of the major bandaid companies after the scab scar thing happened. I forget which one it was, but I talked to their customer service, who did not know what kind of adhesive is used. So they agreed to email me the MDS sheet within a couple of hours, and we got off the phone. The conclusion? The MDS sheet says a bandaid is made of "adhesive". Something like "adhesive tape and gauze material". ... so no help there. Best of luck to you all!

By the way, on a slightly different topic: This website seems to be another gathering place for those who, like me, are often not believed by doctors because we get the rare side effects of things. (I have pictures of bandaid scars to prove I am not making it up, but I just keep collecting psych referals). If you feel that way too, I have found a helpful site at "askapatient.com". It allows people like us to list the side effects they get from specific medicines... the resulting lists often put the most focus on the rarest symptoms so they sound like Chicken Little ("The sky is falling") to the average user; but they are a lifesaver for me, predicting how I will most likely react to a medicine in advance (or often in hindsight, since I stubbornly try not to read in advance to keep myself from creating a fake response unintentionally, and I still get the same rare side effects as others). Sorry for rambling on. It's 3am, and I may or may not ever return to this site; but I wanted to share all of that in hopes that it will help others too.

Oops, I forgot to add that I'm putting Vit E on my finger now and it seems to be healing.

That is good to know that we have alternatives out there - thanks for sharing! :)

Red,

I think you are onto something here. I don't remember ever reacting to Band-Aids like that. Something is different in the chemistry.

I just had a mole remove from my back.  Just as the other posters on this blog stated, my incision is healing fine, my skin around the incision is blistered and red.  This is new, as I have never, had such a reaction before, although it has been years since I have used a newer adhesive bandage (my stock in the house is pre 2006) from out side of my home.  I am also allergic to Neosporin.  I bet what has happened is that some manufacturers (or all) have put Neosporin or a derivative in the adhesive. That way the whole bandage is antibacterial, not just the pad.  I'm sure they have put an antibacterial in the pads for years. Since the adhesive has a tighter contact with the skin then the adhesive causes much more reaction than the pad.  The adhesive also stays on the skin for some time. I also notice that I had trouble getting the remaining adhesive rubbed away from the skin.  So it stays longer than the adhesive I remember from years ago.

All of this is likely coming from our litigious society.  Manufactures are making sure that no infections come from their products.  Unfortunately, the products end up being degraded.  That's why no one from J&J or other companies will respond or change the products.  For me, I will use gauze in the future, or just skip the bandage al together.

I've never wanted to sign into one of these sites but I also have this allergy and I don't know what to do.
I first found out back in like 2008 or 2009, I had scratched my underarm while working. it wasn't too bad and my manager wasn't in that day so I told a coworker but decided not to report it. I put some bandages on and in only a couple of days I noticed these blisters lining where the bandage was. thinking I just somehow got water under my bandage, I, stupidly, but bandages over the blisters. of coarse they did it too. concerned I mentioned this to my manager. he said I should have told him sooner but that he was glad that I did regardless. he also had this problem, finding out after he had had some surgery done. in discovering this he also found out that many bandage companies changed their adhesive recipe and that there was a sudden increase in people who were allergic to it. why things were never done about it boggles my mind and really upsets me.
a bigger problem for me is that I am diabetic, small cuts can become a serious issue if not taken care of, uncovered cuts take significantly longer to heal then one that is protected.
until just recently I only had a reaction on more sensitive areas of skin like my underarms, thighs, belly and such, but my hands and fingers were ok. I could also use the adhesive tape you would use with gauze. however earlier this week I cut my finger by accident with a fishing knife and I was shocked to get a small blister on my finger. and just tonight after using the gauze approach on another sore elsewhere, I had the same thing happen.
its getting worse, and I had hoped to find something online, I'm infuriated to read that companies have pulled their hypoallergenic bandages for no apparent reason, and it seems that there's little or no choice.
I know it's not latex either, I've used latex before with no issue.
if anyone finds a solution I'd love to hear it. I'm going to keep doing research and try to find something too.

Thanks to everyone who's shared their story. It's good to know I'm not alone in my misery. ;)

I found this forum while also doing a search on "band-aid allergy" to get to the bottom of my allergic reactions. After finally getting tested, I discovered some answers to why I have bad reactions to certain bandages and not others. I hope what I share will be helpful to those reading this as well. Here's my story:

about 12 years ago, when I was 21, I fell off a scooter and scraped up my elbow and knees. I put Band-aid brand bandages on them (which I had always used before without problems), but days later, started getting a rash of hundreds of tiny blisters wherever the adhesive had touched! The blisters were so itchy, I involuntarily scratched them at night during my sleep, thereby popping them, which seemed to make the rash spread even more!

I tried putting Neosporin and hydrocortisone on the blisters/rash, but they did nothing to alleviate the itch or the rash! After 2 weeks without improvement, I finally went to a dermatologist who told me I probably had developed a contact allergy to latex. He prescribed "clobetasol propionate 0.05% ointment" for me, a stronger steroid than hydrocortisone, which immediately made things better! As soon as I put it on, the itch stopped, and within a couple days, the blisters were gone and my rash was finally starting to heal.

What boggled me years later was that I realized I wasn't allergic to latex. I could used latex gloves and latex condoms just fine. But I found that as long as I used "latex-free" bandages, I wouldn't get any bad reactions. ... until recently that is.

So, to solve the mystery, I finally went to get some extensive patch testing done with an allergist. What I discovered is that I am allergic to COLOPHONY (also known as ABIETIC ACID, or ROSIN), which is used in a lot of different adhesives and glues -- including some bandages, shoes, clothing, etc.

It was such an AHA! moment for me, solving so many mysteries I had in the past, like why I had an allergic reaction to a new bra (which upon inspection, had been assembled with adhesive on the front and sides), or to a left sandal and not the right ( to which there was some visible adhesive residue left over from manufacturing, and after removed with "Goo-gone", was no longer a problem). :)

The problem is, however, that even after knowing what my allergy is, it doesn't mean I will know which adhesives to avoid and which ones are safe for me, because companies don't list the ingredients in their adhesives!

But this is what I do know: I have no issues with 3M adhesives. 3M scotch tape, masking tape, blue tape, green tape, Micropore surgical paper tape, Nexcare, post-its, you name it -- they work great for me. Most latex-free bandages are good, but not all, so when in doubt, I just use some gauze (or tissue) and 3M tape to cover any wounds as needed. Also, if I start to see or sense a rash coming on, or catch it early (before any blisters develop), I use soap and alcohol wipes (or goo-gone) to remove the adhesive immediately off my skin. Then, a simple over-the-counter Hydrocortisone cream is usually enough to prevent the rash from developing or make it go away without me having to pull out the stronger stuff (Clobetasol).

But, what works for me may not work for everyone else because we may have different allergies to the numerous ingredients that go into adhesives. The best advice is to stick to the brands that are tried and true for YOU. It's a TRIAL AND ERROR process, but be vigilant. (For me, I check every bra I buy to avoid any that are assembled with adhesives -- which is a new trend apparently!)

And if you do by chance read my story, and discover for yourself the same patterns of allergic reactions as I had, then maybe you have a colophony allergy, too, in which case, I hope my post here helped.

Because knowing is half the battle! (G.I. JOE!!!) haha.

Good Luck Everyone, and get tested if you can! :)

Post Edited (Sandy Gravel) : 5/5/2014 7:59:58 AM (GMT-6)