Today in weird patienta dermatological pathology caused by… a fruit!
Last November, young Otis’ mother shows up at a hospital from New South Wales, Australia, with her little boy who suffers from an impressive burn on his chest. The morning of the same day, he drank a squeezed citrus juice and his mother thought he had an allergic reaction, but the doctors disagreed. For them, it is not an inflammatory problem but a pathology nicknamed “the burn of the margarita”.
A fruit burn
The famous cocktail is prepared with lemon juice, but this citrus fruit – like many other fruits or vegetables – contains so-called phototoxic molecules. Exposed to UV emitted by the sun, these produce a toxic reaction that destroys cells. If this takes place on the skin, as is often the case on the hands when squeezing lemons in the summer, it causes a rash and red patches whose appearance deteriorates over the days to look like a second degree burn. In general, the red patches are painful and hot and eventually blister. Doctors call this condition “phytophotodermatosis”. It can be caused by other fruits or vegetables – all those containing furocoumarins, light-sensitive molecules – such as celery. It is also known as the disease of “celery handlers”.
Two days before he arrived at the hospital, little Otis had spent the afternoon outside playing in his swimming pool by the lemon tree in the garden in the sun – it’s summer in Australia in November. He also ate lemons without his parents seeing any danger. Despite the sunscreen that had been applied to him, he developed phytophotodermatosis. Diagnosing phytophotodermatosis can be tricky since its symptoms resemble those of other skin problems. The disease resolves on its own after a few days, in the majority of cases without sequelae. The best way to prevent its appearance is to protect yourself from the sun after having been in contact with photosensitizing products.