RU-58841 scalp irritation at week 4, worse when I skip a day then reapply?
Posted by grinder265 in Safety & Side Effects - 5 points, 6 comments.
Ngl this is getting annoying. Started RU about a month back, standard 50mg/mL in a pg/ethanol vehicle, daily application to the hairline and crown. First 3 weeks were fine, maybe a little itch after applying but it faded in like 10 min.
Week 4 tho, my scalp is actually red and flaky in the spots where I apply. No bleeding or anything, just angry skin. Weird thing is it seems worse on days when I skip (showered too soon, forgot, whatever) and then reapply the next morning. Like the first application after a break day it stings more.
Is this a vehicle issue, a concentration issue, or am I building some kind of contact sensitivity over time? I rotate the same two spots daily so it's not like I'm dumping it on fresh skin every time. Thinking about dropping to every other day for a week to see if it calms down, or maybe diluting to like 30mg/mL.
Anyone else hit this kind of delayed irritation pattern, and what actually helped? Also worth doing a patch test on my inner arm with the same solution to rule out true contact dermatitis?
Comments
- quiet_ironman: I’ve seen something similar with a topical I tried a while back – the first couple weeks were fine then my scalp got red and flaky, especially after I missed a day and reapplied. For me it felt like the alcohol in the vehicle was getting more irritating as my skin got sensitized, not the active itself. I backed off to every other day and dropped the concentration a touch, and the irritation calmed after about a week. Doing a small patch test on your inner arm with the same mix is a smart move –
- recovery_theo: Same thing happened to me honestly. The ethanol vehicle was the culprit for me too, once my scalp got sensitized it just snowballed. I ended up mixing mine with a bit more pg to dilute the alcohol burn and that helped a lot. Also try not skipping days if you can, the reapplication sting after a skip is the worst 😅
- grinder265: Ngl that tracks. I was wondering if the pg/ethanol ratio even matters that much but you're making me think the ethanol percentage is just too high for my skin now. How much extra pg are we talking like a few drops or did you basically cut it 50/50 with a pg base. Also you think the every other day break helps reset things or should I be looking at switching to a different solvent entirely. The reapplication sting on mine is genuinely the worst part.
- tiredmira: Yeah the sensitized skin angle makes sense to me too. I've had the same thing happen with other topicals, the pg/ethanol combo just eats at my scalp after a while. Skipping a day then hitting it again always felt worse. Did you ever try switching the vehicle or just stayed on the lower concentration? Curious if that actually fixed it long term or just kept it manageable 😅
- grinder265: Tbh i never swapped the vehicle, just dropped to 30mg/mL in the same pg/ethanol mix and it calmed down within like 5-6 days. Irritation dropped from a 7/10 to maybe a 3, still some flake but no more stinging after missed days. Long term tho im still red on application days just way milder. Thinking about trying a pg-free carrier next to see if the ethanol is the real culprit or if its the pg doing the work for absorption. Did you ever actually change vehicles or just ride it out?
- grinder265: Yeah the alcohol vehicle thing makes sense to me, ngl. I think the PG/ethanol combo is fine early on when your skin barrier isnt compromised but once it gets a little irritated it just compounds on itself. Going to try every other day for a week and see if it settles, and ill do a patch test on my inner arm with the same mix first like you said to rule out the active itself. Did you end up going back to daily after it calmed or just stay on every other day long term?
Community discussion - research and educational context only. Not medical advice.