Salicylic ointment is an external preparation that has been used for a long time in medicine. This tool is convenient to store in your home medicine chest, because it can help with various household injuries, common skin lesions. Read more about the action and application of this ointment in the article.
How does salicylic ointment work?
Due to low cost, availability and excellent therapeutic effect salicylic ointment has become one of the popular medications that are often used for home therapy. Currently, there is an opportunity to purchase this facility of factory production or order in the prescription department of the pharmacy the necessary amount of freshly prepared ointment according to the prescription issued by the doctor. To understand how salicylic ointment works, you should consider its constituent ingredients and their pharmacological properties.
Salicylic ointment - composition
The medicament in question is a dense, homogeneous, greasy mass of white-gray color, packaged in jars of plastic and glass or in metal tubes. The main component that contains the ointment is salicylic acid, which has an active effect on the tissues when the product is applied. This substance is used in many medical and cosmetic products. For the first time it was allocated in the XIX century by the Italian chemist R. Piria from natural raw materials - willow bark, and later acid was synthesized by an industrial method.
Salicylic acid, which in the ointment can be in the concentration of 2, 3, 5, 10 or 60%, belongs to the class of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. As an additional component (fat base) in the composition of the ointment is used purified medical Vaseline, which ensures the uniform distribution and dissolution of salicylic acid. It is worth noting that there are still varieties of salicylic ointment: salicylic-zinc ointment - containing zinc oxide, sulfur-salicylic ointment - with the inclusion of precipitated sulfur.
What helps salicylic ointment?
Depending on what the salicylic ointment is used for, prescribe this drug with a lower or higher salicylic acid content. Basically, this drug is used in the field of dermatology for application to the skin surface, with mechanical, thermal, infectious damage. With a significant degree of inflammatory lesion and when it is necessary to treat large areas, an ointment with a low concentration of the active acid is often used. We list the main effects produced by the active compound of the drug:
- pronounced anti-inflammatory;
- keratolytic (in high concentrations);
- antiseptic;
- locally irritating;
- drying;
- vasoconstrictive;
- antipruritic;
- easy anesthetic;
- normalization of secretion of sebaceous and sweat glands.
In addition, the second component of the ointment, Vaseline, has an additional effect:
- softens tissues;
- prevents loss of moisture;
- protects the skin from external negative factors.
Salicylic ointment - side effects
Despite the fact that salicylic ointment side effects manifest in rare cases and is characterized by good tolerability for the majority of patients, its possible negative reactions should be singled out:
- itching;
- swelling;
- redness of the skin;
- the appearance of a rash.
Salicylic ointment - indications for use
Let's enumerate what salicylic ointment has indications for use:
- eczema ;
- light burns (thermal, chemical);
- bacterial, fungal skin lesions;
- intertrigo;
- psoriasis ;
- furunculosis;
- wounds, cuts;
- acne;
- oily seborrhea ;
- corns;
- ichthyosis;
- hyperkeratosis;
- hyperhidrosis;
- warts;
- cornflowers ;
- pityriasis lichen.
Salicylic ointment - contraindications
An ointment containing salicylic acid should not be used in the following cases:
- individual intolerance of drug components;
- intolerance to other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs;
- pronounced functional kidney failure;
- early pregnancy (only with the permission of a doctor).
Salicylic ointment - use
Before using salicylic ointment, it is worth considering several nuances:
- With prolonged treatment with this drug, habituation arises, that is, the skin stops responding to it, and the therapeutic effect is difficult to achieve, therefore, the course of application should not exceed 6-12 days (further, a two-week interval is required).
- You can not simultaneously apply to the damaged area of other external drugs (you can only alternate their application).
- Caution should be used in parallel with ointment funds from the group of sulfonylureas, as well as methotrexate and hypoglycemic agents, since salicylic acid can enhance the side effects of these drugs.
- Do not apply ointment with salicylic acid on birthmarks, moles .
Salicylic ointment for acne - use
Actively used salicylic ointment from acne on the face and body, including in the complex treatment. In addition to the fact that the application of this drug promotes early maturation and the disappearance of pimples, it serves as an excellent prophylaxis of post-acne in the form of pigment spots, scars. Salicylic ointment for acne is recommended with an active ingredient content of 2-3%.
In a pure form, the agent should be applied pointwise to the inflammatory elements, which is more convenient with a cotton swab. The procedure is repeated up to 3 times a day for several days until the pimple comes off. There is another option for treating extensive acne eruptions, combined with increased greasiness. To do this, you should combine in equal proportions salicylic ointment, zinc ointment and Bepanten plus cream. The obtained composition must be applied at night to the lesion area for 7-10 days. Then the remedy is used in the same way, but every 3-4 days.
Salicylic ointment from black spots
Thanks to the exfoliating action, the drug in question copes well with comedones , from which sufferers of problem skin suffer. It is important to know how to use salicylic ointment to solve this problem correctly. It is recommended to apply the product locally to areas with occluded pores after preliminary cleansing and steaming once a day at night for a week. In parallel, you should use a soft face scrub 2-3 times a week. Salicylic ointment for the face from black dots is used 2%.
Salicylic ointment - an application for psoriasis
With psoriasis on the body appear raised rashes in the form of pink and red spots, covered with whitish dry scales. For the pathology, periods of exacerbation and remission characterized by severity and severity of symptoms are characteristic. Salicylic ointment in psoriasis is often recommended as part of complex treatment and is considered one of the most effective drugs from the group of nonsteroidal drugs. At the same time, during an exacerbation, an ointment with a concentration of 1-2% is used, and with the extinction of symptoms 3-5%.
The medication should be applied in a thin, even layer on psoriatic plaques, covered with gauze or bandage and left until completely absorbed. Multiplicity of application - 2 times a day, the treatment course should be from 7 to 20 days, depending on the depth of the lesion. The product helps to significantly improve the condition of the skin and prepare it for the effect of other medical formulations. If salicylic ointment provokes an increase in inflammation, it should be discarded.
Salicylic ointment from lichen
Means based on salicylic acid, which not only inhibit the pathogenic microflora, but also help to cleanse the skin from crusts and peeling, can be used for some types of lichen - otrubrious and pink. If a salicylic ointment is prescribed against the lichen, how to apply it and what to combine with, the doctor should determine, taking into account the type of causative agent of skin lesions. Often, a 5% drug is applied to the affected areas twice a day.
With pityriasis (multicolored) lichen caused by a yeast-like fungus, often against the background of increased sweating and exposure to sunlight in the warm season, salicylic ointment can be used as a preventive agent. To do this, you should apply medication 2-3 times a week to areas where lesions often occur (avoid the scalp and inguinal area).
Salicylic ointment from papillomas
Not bad salicylic ointment from warts (papillomas) of any type - flat, plantar, pointed. In this case, a remedy with a concentration of 60% should be used, but this highly concentrated ointment can not be applied to the face and neck skin, where the risk of burns is high. The drug is applied pointwise for 8-12 hours in the form of an application, for which you can use a patch. Procedures should be carried out daily until the build-up disappears.
Salicylic ointment from corns
It is recommended salicylic ointment from corns and dry hardened calluses on the feet and hands as a softening agent. To remove such formations should be used ointment with a concentration of 3-5%. Before applying the medicine, you should rinse the skin well, making a warm bath, and then carefully dry it. The ointment is applied in a thin layer and covered with a gauze bandage. This procedure should be repeated twice or thrice a day for 3-4 days. After completing the course, the corn can be easily removed with pumice stone after steaming.
In addition, the ointment can be used with newly appeared calluses, which contributes to the disinfection of tissues and the speedy healing. In this case, you should take a 2% drug and apply to the damaged area, covering with a bandage or adhesive plaster. Use an ointment to treat calluses is recommended daily until the tissue is completely healed.
Salicylic ointment from nail fungus
It should be noted immediately that salicylic ointment from the fungus that hit the nail plate is not the most effective means, and it is very difficult to get rid of pathology by some external means. Therefore, you should definitely consult a doctor who prescribes a treatment regimen using systemic antifungal agents. Ointment with salicylic acid can be used in addition to basic therapy, which will help to get rid of the affected tissues.
Ointment with a 5% concentration, it is necessary to daily treat the nail plate and skin around for night or day for 8-10 hours, applying it in a thick layer and covering with a bandage bandage. Preliminary it is necessary to make a warm soap-soda bath, immersing a finger with an infected nail for 10-15 minutes, and then drying with a towel. The duration of the course is 2 weeks, after which it is necessary to take a break for 10-14 days and repeat the procedure again.
Salicylic ointment - analogues
Let's enumerate what other salicylic acid-based ointments exist:
- Hemosol;
- Kerasal;
- salicylic-zinc ointment ;
- salicylic-sulfuric ointment.