#petrolatum

Ingredient: Petrolatum, mineral oil, hydrocortisone, pramoxine HCl, or phenylephrine HCl.

Dosage Form:

Ointment: Petrolatum 74.9%, mineral oil 14%, and phenylephrine HCl 0.25%.

Suppositories: Cocoa butter 88.44%, phenylephrine HCl 0.25%.

Maximum Strength Pain Relief Cream: Petrolatum 15%, glycerin 14.4%, pramoxine HCl 1%, phenylephrine HCl 0.25%.

Hydrocortisone Anti-Itch Cream: 1% hydrocortisone.

Cooling Gel: Phenylephrine 0.25% and witch hazel 50%.

Cleansing Wipes: 50% witch hazel.

FDA Indication/Dosages:

For the temporary relief of symptoms of hemorrhoids: Apply regular cream or ointment freely to the affected area OR insert a suppository into the rectum as needed. May be repeated for a total of 3-5 treatments a day. Optimum treatment times are at bedtime and after bowel movements. Cleansing pads and tissues should be used after bowel movements. Blotting the area instead of rubbing will lesson irritation.

For the temporary relief of external anal itch and itching associated with minor skin irritations and rashes (hydrocortisone cream only): Apply 3-4 times a day after cleansing and drying affected areas.

Pharmacology: Petrolatum and mineral oil are used externally as protectants. Witch hazel is an astringent that protects the hemorrhoidal tissue and provides relief from irritation. Phenylephrine is a α-adrenergic sympathomimetic that helps to minimize inflammation or swelling of anal tissue. Hydrocortisone is an adrenocorticoid binding to receptor proteins within the cytoplasm of sensitive cells to alter the transcription of mRNA. Anti-inflammatory effects may be due to an inhibition of the mobilization of leukocytes and monocytes to the affected area.

Evaluation: The symptom of uncomplicated hemorrhoids includes itching, burning, painful inflammation, and discomfort in the anal region. Minor blood spots on undergarments or toilet tissue may also appear. Bleeding upon defecation, severe pain, or seepage of fecal matter may be signs of a more serious anorectal disease. Patients should consult a physician if these symptoms appear. Precipitating factors for development of hemorrhoids includes prolonged standing or sitting, constipation, pregnancy, diarrhea, stimulant-laxative abuse, coughing or sneezing, heart failure or hypertension, and physical exertion.

Contraindications/Precautions: Do not use if rectal bleeding is apparent. Conditions involving lesions with or without the formation of pus should not be treated without first consulting a physician. If condition does not improve within 7 days or becomes worse, consult a physician. Do not put the hydrocortisone cream into the rectum by any means.

Adverse Effects: Rare beyond the symptoms being treated.

Patient Consultation:

Consult a physician if condition does not improve within 7 days or becomes worse.

If the hemorrhoids are caused by constipation, try taking a bulk laxative and drinking plenty of waters.

Optimum treatment times are at bedtime and after bowel movements.

Remove suppositories from wrapper before inserting.

Consult a physician if the insertion of the cream, ointment, or suppository into the rectum causes pain.

vaseline is petroleum jelly, also known as petrolatum, which gets a lot of bad press these days because well, petroleum anything doesn’t sound super enticing, but in reality, while it may not suit everyone’s concept of ‘100% natural ingredients’ it is a pretty good occlusive, but it doesn’t simply sit on top of the skin clogging pores and such: research appears to show that it can penetrate into the stratum corneum (the topmost layer of dead skin cells) and boost its barrier function, as well as help protect the skin from microbes. petrolatum is a byproduct of the petrochemical industry, that is, it uses up waste materials/secondary products from fossil fuel/plastics production and other industrial processes; i’ll leave the ethics of that one up to you, as a case can be made for both boycotting it or using it.

so, petroleum jelly, i.e. vaseline, is safe and can be beneficial to help hold in moisture and defend your skin. what are its downsides? well, the eye area can be particularly prone to milia - hard, pearlescent-white little bumps under the skin that look like clogged pores but are actually buildups of keratin - and occlusives like petroleum jelly can worsen that situation and give you more milia. furthermore, while occlusives are important to help your skin hold on to moisture, especially if it’s damaged and its barrier function has been compromised, they are not providing hydration in and of themselves, so you should ideally layer them over a humectant or simply use a product formulated with both of those. eye creams are a possibility, but for most cases it is more than enough to bring up your moisturizer into the undereye area; you really don’t need a separate eye product.

occlusives in and of themselves shouldn’t cause puffiness unless you are allergic to them, but very humectant-rich products, thanks to the sponge-like affinity for water these molecules have, can indeed make your undereyes puffy at times. many intensive/luxury/antiaging eye creams have this effect, which is desirable for filling out wrinkles and hollowness but otherwise too extreme; a regular moisturizer should pose no problem. please note that puffiness can still happen due to factors unrelated to skincare!