ALLERGIC CONTACT CHEILITIS OF BOTH LIPS CAUSED BY WHITE PETROLEUM JELLY

Abstract

White petroleum jelly is commonly used as a skin protectant for dry skin and dry lips. The active ingredient of white petroleum jelly is "petrolatum". Petroleum jelly very rarely causes hypersensitivity reactions. Even though it is a very rare case, allergic reaction to petroleum jelly is a potential problem of its common use of petroleum jelly for cosmetic and medical purposes. We report a case of a 25years old male patient with allergic contact cheilitis of both lips. The patient presented with complaints of cheilitis of both lips due to the white petroleum jelly application, which was treated with topical and oral steroids. Rechallenge was not done in the interest of the patient and due to ethical constraints. Due to the emerging adverse events related to white petroleum jelly, All health care providers should create awareness about the adverse events related to white petroleum jelly among the public. White petroleum jelly is used worldwide in most of cosmetic products, it should be used with caution. We can use natural cocoa butter kind of products as moisturizers instead of petroleum jelly.