# Sunburn dermatitis?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sunburn-dermatitis/250620>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [June 16, 2004, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sunburn-dermatitis/250620 "2004-06-16T05:42:21Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Nametag](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nametag/32/406_2.png) [@Nametag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nametag)\
**Post date:** [June 16, 2004, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sunburn-dermatitis/250620/1 "2004-06-16T05:42:21Z")

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I am very fair-skinned, and sunburn easily. When I do, I get a few little red bumps on my skin (usually on my arms, which have been burned repeatedly for years). They look like pimples, and they sometimes come to a white head like pimples, but they don’t pop like pimples. Is this common, should I be concerned, and WTF are they, anyway?

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**Author:** ![CrazyCatLady](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dfb087/32.png) [@CrazyCatLady](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CrazyCatLady)\
**Post date:** [June 16, 2004, 7:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sunburn-dermatitis/250620/2 "2004-06-16T07:21:56Z")

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What you’re describing sounds like pustules, and there are lots of reasons you might get pustules.

Out of curiosity, does the area get red and sort of bumpy _under_ the skin or itch, especially if you’ve been out an unusually long time? Does it happen more frequently early in the summer? If so, you could have polymorphic light eruption or something similar. I’ve got a tentative diagnosis of PLE myself, and it’s a right pain in the arse, it is. From what I’ve been able to gather PLE isn’t dangerous in and of itself, but it can sometimes be an early symptom of lupus. Basically, you have to wear high-test sunscreen and stay out of the sun whenever you can.

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**Author:** ![Philster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/13edae/32.png) [@Philster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Philster)\
**Post date:** [June 16, 2004, 1:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sunburn-dermatitis/250620/3 "2004-06-16T13:18:13Z")

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I have a skin problems that require a fair amount of sun to fend off. Dermatitis is a general term for skin problems, and when I lack sun, my skin flakes, dries and thickens.

Since the skin./sun issues are usually tricky to figure out, and how your skin reacts to the sun can speak to meds you might be on, or general health, definitely see a doc.