wet suit rash

[misterguy]

Help
I just bought my first wet suit Aquaflex 7mm

The problem is after using it in the pool i get a ichy, blochy skin rash on my back, shoulders, chest and ankels that last for a few days, this has happened 2x now

has anyone expericenced this? and did it go away?

i didnt have any problems with the rental suits

Could this a Aquaflex thing
I was thinking i may need to were between me and the suit
thanks for your input

 

[fisherdvm]

Abrasion maybe?? If it is over the seams - abrasion from adhesive/stitch/fabric should be considered. Rash on the ankles are likely abrasion due to flexion and extension from your fin movement.

Someone had posted about getting a rash only along the seams, and you might browse through the diving medicine section as it was discussed in detail.

 

[spectrum]

A neoprene allergy is a possibility, it exists.

 

[CUunderH2O]

You could be allergic to neoprene, or to one of the chemicals that's used to make neoprene. I have the same issue except my rash lasted 2 weeks after each pool session. Wearing a dive skin underneath didn't help. The chlorine makes the chemicals in the neoprene leach out faster, so you get more of a reaction from wearing it in the pool. If you have access to a dermatologist or allergist, get yourself patch tested.

Rental suits, if they have been well-used in the pool, have had most of the chemicals leached out so they may not make you react as noticeably as you did with a brand new suit.

If it really is an allergy, I sympathize with you. I freeze whenever I do pool dives, since all I can wear is a dive skin

Here's more info about my neoprene allergy
http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=89937

 

[matjo1]

I' ve seen this happen to a few of my students. Funny thing though, it would happen in the first few pool sessions, but by the end of their open water dives. The red spots would no longer appear... Maybe an allergy to whatever stuff they put to preserve the neoprene, but not to neoprene itself? Maybe run your suit through the most gentle cycle of your washing machine with mild soap a few time. Hope it works.

 

[misterguy]

CUunderh2o
thanks for the reply
so how did you solve this,
are you saying that outside of clorine it will be better?

 

[CUunderH2O]

misterguy,

Yes, you may not react as much, or not at all, outside of the pool. Unfortunately, you've already exposed your suit to chlorine, thereby releasing the chemicals in it, so it could take a while for it to stop releasing them in large quantities. I have a wetsuit that I use for all my warm water diving which I never expose to chlorine. I don't get more than a little bit of itching, if any at all.

If you're "lucky", you're like me and you don't have an extreme neoprene allergy (some ppl react badly with blisters like a burn). My allergy is annoying, but I live with it (well ok, the itching drove me nuts, but it didn't kill me . If you dive in cold water, get a shell drysuit; no neoprene = no allergy.

One more thing: get yourself tested for a latex allergy. Some ppl react to both latex (natural rubber) and neoprene. Others (like me) are OK with latex, but not neoprene.

 

[skynscuba]

CUunderh2o
thanks for the reply
so how did you solve this,
are you saying that outside of clorine it will be better?

My GF's experience was pretty much as CUunderH2O described. She used her new suit for the first time in my pool, and the combination of new suit and chlorine gave her a rash. Lycra under-skin did not help. She could also just get in the shower with the suit and start having a reaction. The "fix" was to turn the suit inside out and scrub it with liquid soap in very warm water. (I think she used wetsuit wash, but Joy should work okay). Don't just rinse it, use a washcloth. Scrub it, let it soak, scrub and rinse very thoroughly. After a couple of sessions, the problem was fixed.
Good luck! You could also try taking some allergy medicine.

 

[CUunderH2O]

I took Benadryl at night to help me sleep and help stop the itching. It worked for a few hours, but not much longer. I also got some prescription cream from my dermatologist that helped the itching better than the OTC hydrocortisone cream I had been using before.

 

[Bratface]

My buddy got a similar rash this weekend during a dive trip. I gave her some cortisone cream to use and it disappeared in hours. You can get it over the counter.