They look exactly like tiny blisters that only started the beginning of summer '13,when exposed to any length of time in the direct sun they occur&the longer i stay out the worse the coverage,other than it looking like a pretty bad case of poison oak or ivy they really don't hurt. That is until i begin to dig at them out of annoyance&bad habit,eventually popping the bigger ones causing the area around them to get quite itchy. i don't work outdoors or have a reason to be out on any regular basis so if i stay out of sun light all together they're a non issue but over the passed two summers this is getting more than a little depressing. When i do end up breaking any open there's only a tiny bit of water type liquid that comes out then they dry out&scab over in a day or two,i know that picking only does more harm but the problem is that the non-popped blister takes forever to go away&I've tried every o.t.c product there is with extremely limited to mostly no successes,but unfortunately I've noticed that the popped ones leave long lasting blemishes&scars that are every bit as noticeable&off-putting as the poison looks.also taking months to become non noticeable. These blisters are limited to the back of both my hands only&as of now I've been staying indoors near 98% of the time mainly venturing out after sunset or at night. i haven't had any kind of sunburn or prolonged sun exposure in decades however in my youth i was out constantly&no one in my family ever said get out of the sun or worried about sunscreen but from my late teen years up to presently in my early 40's was out only long enough to tan 2 or 3 times at most,i'm Caucasian but skin tone is on the darker side year round so on the rare occasion i did tan it takes well over a year or years to lighten up&i never actually burned nowhere close to the point of sore or peeling skin'i should also mention that over the last 10-15 years i would get very similar bumps on my both forearms on rare occasions that i'm out for long periods of time,going to an amusement park all day for example but they were not even close to how bad my hands get in even just a fraction of that time.healing in a day or two leaving hardly a trace&about a decade ago i began to apply sunscreen to them on the days i planned to be out"that pretty much remedied the forearm issue to the point of almost forgetting about them,coupled with the fact that in early spring i invested in a way more expensive sunscreen with a ridiculously high U.V. # that i apply to back of hands/forearms when i go out for any length of time&fortunately my forearms are fine but even the good sunscreen doesn't help my hands except for the minimal amounts of exposure,as soon as i'm out long enough for my skin to feel hot its too late&as if i didn't apply anything.however since the bumps were seemingly identical it was worth a mention. Lastly on a positive note i have pretty good skin being that it heal fast,having had a numerous scrapes,cuts,bruises,stitches&scars that all healed very fast&they all are mostly undetectable to the eye except for a couple of major dings but even they are barely noticeable,unfortunately from the first time i'm out for any normal length of time early in the sunny season long enough to break them out they take what seems like forever to heal then fade leaving permanent scaring it seems. I should add that because i'm naturally a darker complexion I've never had the need to tan by booth or laying in the sun&never had an outdoor type job. Unfortunately i haven't tracked down any of that reasonably priced health insurance yet&due to a recent divorce&all the soul sucking turmoil that goes along with that its hard to keep a roof over yet alone saving they cash needed for Dr. visits&follow up care so any free advice that i get will surely be appreciated. Thank you.
What are tiny blister-like bumps on back of hands & forearms after spending anytime at all in sun?
Question posted by PillsAreGood on 22 Sep 2014
Last updated on 16 November 2015 by suzanne66
Answers
It could be a sun allergy?
A sun allergy is an immune system reaction to sunlight. The most common locations include the "V" of the neck, the back of the hands, the outside surface of the arms and the lower legs. It usually presents as an itchy red rash but in rare cases, the skin reaction may be more severe, producing hives or small blisters that may even spread to skin in clothed areas.
Sun allergies occur only in certain sensitive people, and in some cases, they can be triggered by only a few brief moments of sun exposure. Scientists do not know exactly why some people develop a sun allergy and others do not. There is evidence, however, that some forms of sun allergy are inherited.
For more information on sun allergy, symptoms diagnosis and treatment see:
https://www.drugs.com/health-guide/sun-allergy-photosensitivity.html
Related topics
Similar questions
Search for questions
Still looking for answers? Try searching for what you seek or ask your own question.