1. Clean All of Your Clothes and Equipment Thoroughly
Poison sumac secretes urishiol oil, which 90 percent of us are allergic to. The oil is what causes all the itching and rashes, and it may become stuck on clothing and tools as well as skin. If it does, you may go to great lengths to treat the poison sumac on your skin, only to find yourself being infected again by unseen and untreated oils on your clothes. Rub tools and equipment and soak your clothes with anti-urishiol treatments such as Tecnu. Wash your clothes in extremely hot water, and refrain from using bleach or other harsh chemicals. Repeat the process with any sheets or towels you may have come into contact with.
2. Refrain From Scratching or Breaking any Blisters
The itch from poison sumac can be overwhelming, but whenever you scratch it, it simply spreads the urishiol oil further across your skin--making the problem worse. Don't scratch at it, period. Similarly, avoid breaking any blisters that form from poison sumac. The blisters don't contain urishiol oil as some people believe (that's just a myth), but broken blisters can become infected much more readily and result in scarring. The less you can touch the infected area the better.
3. Apply Medication to Remove the Urishiol Oil
In order to treat poison sumac properly, you need to get the urishiol oil off of your skin. Tecnu, Cortaid and similar medications are designed specifically to remove that oil. A colloidal oatmeal bath in lukewarm water works to remove the oil as well, and in a pinch, you can use rubbing alcohol. Be sure to apply the medication to all exposed portions of the skin, not just the portion that itches. Urishiol oil may not manifest for several hours after you are exposed to it.
4. Use Other Medication to Treat the Symptoms of Poison Sumac
Numerous other medications don't actively remove the urishiol oil, but help to soothe and moisturize the skin, which prevents the symptoms from becoming too unbearable. Calamine lotion is a natural moisturizer, and some patients have suggested Noxema skin pads as a good treatment as well. For more serious cases, a doctor can prescribe a treatment of steroids or cortizone to treat the problem. You can also alleviate the symptoms by taking oral antihistamines, which are used to suppress allergies. Topical antihistamines are not recommended, however.
5. Apply Cold Compresses to the Skin
Cold compresses keep the skin from drying out and lower the temperature caused by a poison sumac infection. Soak a washcloth in extremely cold water and wrap it around ice if possible. Then apply it to the infected area and hold it there for at least 10 minutes. Add more ice or soak the cloth in cold water again if its temperature becomes as warm as the affected skin. This method works well in a pinch if you are out hiking or somewhere where you can't get at medication easily.
