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When to see a doctor
By Mayo Clinic staff
Seek immediate medical care
Get immediate medical care if peeling skin is accompanied by other signs or symptoms that may indicate infection or a more serious illness:
- Fever
- Unexplained weight loss
- Persistent fatigue
- Muscle or joint pain
- General feeling of poor health
- Other worrisome symptoms
Call your doctor
Peeling skin caused by dry skin or mild sunburn is likely to improve with over-the-counter lotions and usually doesn't require medical care. If you have any doubt about the cause of peeling skin or if the condition is severe, call your doctor before trying over-the-counter lotions or home remedies.
- Hand and foot dermatitis. The Merck Manuals: The Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals. http://www.merck.com/mmpe/sec10/ch114/ch114e.html. Accessed Jan. 25, 2010.
- Habif T. Clinical Dermatology: A Color Guide to Diagnosis and Therapy. 5th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Mosby Elsevier; 2010.
- Atopic dermatitis. The Merck Manuals: The Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals. http://www.merck.com/mmpe/sec10/ch114/ch114b.html. Accessed Jan. 25, 2010.
- Exfoliative dermatitis. The Merck Manuals: The Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals. http://www.merck.com/mmpe/sec10/ch114/ch114d.html. Accessed Jan. 25, 2010.
- Tips to remember: Allergic skin conditions. American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. http://www.aaaai.org/patients/publicedmat/tips/allergicskinconditions.stm. Accessed Feb. 11, 2010.
- General information about mycosis fungoides and the Sézary syndrome. National Cancer Institute. http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/pdq/treatment/mycosisfungoides. Accessed Feb. 11, 2010.
- Karakayli G, et al. Exfoliative dermatitis. American Family Physician. 1999;59:625.
- Information from your family doctor: What can I do for dry, itchy skin? American Family Physician. 2003;68:1145.
- Dermatophytoses. The Merck Manuals: The Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals. http://www.merck.com/mmpe/sec10/ch120/ch120c.html. Accessed Jan. 28, 2010.
- Harnden A, et al. Kawasaki disease. British Medical Journal. 2009;338:b1514.
- Streptococcal and enterococcal infections. The Merck Manuals: The Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals. http://www.merck.com/mmpe/sec14/ch171/ch171d.html. Accessed Jan. 28, 2010.
- Schwartz RA. Seborrheic dermatitis: An overview. American Family Physician. 2006;74:125.
- Painter D, et al. Staphylococcal scalded skin syndrome. Emergency Nurse. 2007;14:20.
- Parrillo SJ. Stevens-Johnson syndrome and toxic epidermal necrolysis. Current Allergy and Asthma Reports. 2007;7:243.
- Sunburn. The Merck Manuals: The Merck Manual for Healthcare Professionals. http://www.merck.com/mmpe/sec10/ch115/ch115d.html. Accessed Jan. 25, 2010.
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