I wanted to give you a quick update about my ongoing experiment using Shirudo AGR+E lotion as a PMLE treatment. I just came back from an amazing trip to Vietnam, including 5 days in wonderful Phu Quoc Island, a paradise Island in the Golf of Thailand. Lots of sun, very hot weather. I spent the last 5 days of my trip at the beach, reading multiple books under my umbrella and swimming in the ocean. I had approximately 6 to 7 hours of full body sun exposure each day. It’s now my third year using Shirudo AGR+E lotion. Again it’s been a real success.
It felt a little itchy on my legs on day 3, I was afraid to have a sun rash the next morning… but I didn’t. I don’t even know if it was related to PMLE or simply caused by dry skin. Now I can say for sure the lotion is still effective after multiple usage. I didn’t develop any resistance or accommodation to the lotion even after, I think, my 6th or 7th sun vacation so far. This one was especially important because it’s now middle of a very hard winter here in Canada and I had absolutely no tan at all before I left, and I didn’t do anything special prior to departure. My skin was very dry, and for sure got worse after 28 hours on a plane! I was worried that I would be more prone to a PMLE rash in these conditions. Honestly I didn’t see any difference, except that I didn’t get much of a sun tan this time. It’s probably related to dry skin also.
Again this time I used Coppertone Sport 30 and it worked wonderfully. I also tried Ombrelle 45 Complete on my face and neck. I’m now sure this one doesn’t mix well with Shirudo AGR+E. I don’t know exactly what ingredient causes the problem, but as mentioned by other Shirudo users, Ombrelle 45 Complete lotion “piled up” on my skin and flaked after a good rub. This problem didn’t occurred with Coppertone Sport lotion. I compared the ingredient list and it’s quite similar. Main difference is the Mexoryl in Ombrelle. I can’t say for sure because there is also a long list of non-medicinal ingredients. The flaking effect is not as bad as Avene lotion with Zinc, but annoying enough that it won’t be part of my recommended sunscreen list anymore. So that’s it! I will now stick to a small quantity of Shirudo AGR+E every 2 hours and my Coppertone Sport 30 broad screen lotion on top, it’s my PMLE treatment and the best solution for PMLE prevention so far.
If you still haven’t found any successful PMLE treatment, I wish 2015 will be your year! I learned so much this year corresponding weekly with PMLE sufferers from around the world. It’s a real pleasure to read your comments and great feedback. Thank you all!
– Eloise
I live in Indiana and our family likes to go to Florida in the summer for vacation. Three of the last four florida vacations I have had PMLE on my face. This year after the second day in the sun I broke out I thought I was being careful 50spf trying to stay in the shade but made a mistake the second day and spent some time in the pool. Last year I did the same thing and had no problems! I also have had the rash come back after a Florida vacation at home. I have not had issues the summers we stayed home. Has anyone had this same experience?
Oh my god!! Someone bligged about PMLE! I am so excited right now and even more excited to try out shirudo! Do you have a good website i can get it ftom? I got diagnosed around 15 or 16 (I’m 37 now) PMLE sucks, and no one believes me until the rash comes out. I have worked hard over the years to get my arms tattooed but, they are so expensive, its a slow process. It may “hide” the rash but the itch is real! Just curious how the sun makes you feel internally? I feel so sluggish when im in the sun. Thoughts?? Im so excited i found PMLE People!!
Same here. PMLE made me tired and irritable. I would also have joint pain and headache. I’m happy to say Shirudo AGR+E lotion take care of the rash but also all other symptoms.
Your blog is so helpful! I was diagnosed with PMLE last year (though it has happened the past two summers) and I have been dreading my trip to Aruba this coming May. Thank you for documenting all of this – there isn’t much out there in terms of prevention (and the suggestions for treating the symptoms haven’t worked that well for me). I’m going to try your suggestions and hope for the best!
Hi! Were you diagnosed by a doctor with this or self diagnosis a from research and reading? I think this is what I have!! So.. You just put this Shirudo cream on every time you are going to be out in the sun?
Hi Kasandra! The first Dermatologist I consult didn’t know what it was. It was 26 years ago so maybe it was less common then. She then suspected an allergic reaction to my sunscreen. Following years I tried all possible lotions but still got the rash. I also tried sun exposure without sunscreen at all (bad idea) and still got the rash. So this is when I started to suspect it was something else. I made extensive research online and this is when I learned about PMLE. I consult another dermatologist and he simply confirmed it was PMLE, prescribed cortisone lotion and told me to stay away from the sun! So then I started to look for natural PMLE treatment, tried multiples with few improvement and started to develop my own lotion.
I use Shirudo AGR+E 15 minutes before sun exposure, specially when I go on a tropical holiday in winter time (I’m from Canada). I then apply a broad spectrum sunscreen. I like Coppertone Sport since I tolerate well all ingredients. I also use AGR+E on the first month of summer or until I start to have a light tan. This is usually when I can start to use only sunscreen. When we don’t have lots of sun I have to keep using it all summer long since ‘hardening’ won’t happen. Hardening is when you get used to sun exposure and you don’t get a pmle rash easily. Hoping this will help.
Despite my personal experience I still recommend to consult your doctor or a dermatologist first. They are now very well informed about this condition and all other sun related conditions. Take pictures of your rash if you don’t have it on the day you consult. Identifying the specific condition is the first and most important step! I wish you good luck in your search for a treatment.
Hello Eloise 🙂
Your blog is so helpful and informative. There isn’t many out there that are very helpful. After living with pmle for over 10 years, it took me extremely long to find the right products to use. I still need to try the Shirudo lotion but had some troubles getting it delivered and haven’t tried since. I finally decided to write about them and hopefully save people hours or weeks of research. I would love it if you can have a look too: http://www.elitravelbug.com/travel-with-prickly-heat-sun-allergy/
Hi Eli,
thank you for your feedback! Having both PMLE and prickly heat much be very challenging, specially when you travel the world! It must also have been really hard to get the right diagnosis since PMLE usually don’t affect areas that were not exposed to UV. Let me know once you tried Shirudo AGR+E. It might be a good product to add to your regimen, specially at night since you don’t want to apply sunscreen before going to bed. The soothing effect of the lotion and antioxidant effect from AGR will surely help. Having a well hydrated skin is always important with sun exposure, it helps in keeping a good PH and an overall healthy and effective skin barrier.
I had success or semi success last summer with the agr+e lotion & neutrogena sunscreen in the yellow bottle. The rash did rear it’s ugly head next to last day of vacation when we ran out of neutrogena sunscreen and I used the coppertone sport sunscreen spray. I considered ordering LaRoche Posay sunscreen but after research decided to try the neutrogena. Just curious if you had experienced any differences between sunscreens and if you had tried agr+e lotion alone when not in heavy sun? Also, I was curious if you had done any photo-therapy or tanning using the lotion to prepare for a sunny vacation? Thanks for your blogs & posts!! It’s only because of your website and another girl’s from Kentucky that I was able to diagnose myself. Now I don’t have to give up the sun!!!!!! Thanks!!!
Kerri Cunningham, TN
Hi Kerri, thanks for sharing! I mostly use Coppertone Sport now, I find it really easy to apply. I think it helps to stick to a regular application if it can be done quickly. But I understand Coppertone lotion is not for everyone, some ingredients can be problematic for people with other sensitive skin problems… You should stick to the lotion you prefer as long as it covers broad spectrum UV A and B. According to clinical studies there is no indication that AGR and vitamin E alone can be effective, so I always use sunscreen on top. The only time I use AGR+E alone is at night after shower while on vacation, it helps to prevent minor rash on my feet (lotion application on the feet is difficult when at beach). It’s a very good moisturizer and I think it makes a difference for me.
I tried tanning sessions a couple of years ago, 3 or 4 times, when I was desperately looking for a solution to prevent my PMLE rash. (you can read about everything I tried here) I don’t know exactly why, it surely must be related to the type of UV rays, but I was never able to get a real PMLE rash after sun tanning sessions. I got minor success once I had a little suntan prior to vacation, but it was still painful enough to ruin my vacation. In my opinion it’s not worth the risk. That being said my PMLE is not as severe as others, so I would still prefer to have a rash then the risk associated with sun tanning… But I guess it’s a choice everyone has to make. Phototherapy is not available where I live so I never had a chance to try it. I’m glad you found us and that it help you identify your problem. It would have shorten my quest for a solution if I had found a blog like this 10 years ago, it’s the reason I develop this blog. It’s always nice to hear from people who appreciate it. Keep fine-tuning your solution and I wish your next vacation is a complete success. Thanks again for your feedback.