Also known as: the middle child of skin conditions.
Not acne but not eczema, perioral dermatitis is a misunderstood condition. Easy to palm off as redness or a bit of dry skin, it often isn’t until it’s out of control that we take notice. Cue: panic. And that’s why, when it comes to the red rash, we don’t know as much as we should. 
Until recently (or, if we?re being specific, until quarantine) perioral dermatitis was a distant threat and a skin condition that not many of us even considered. But it’s more common than you think. Often brought on by heightened stress levels, changes in our hormones (e.g. from menstrual cycles, pregnancy or just, life) and the beauty junkie urge to try every new beauty product on the market, the condition is a hard one to identify in its early stages. Not only that, but treating it can feel like you’re fighting a losing battle ? but that’s where we come in. Here, we’ve enlisted the help of dermatologist, Dr Shyamalar Gunatheesan, to help us get to the bottom of exactly what perioral dermatitis is. Plus, how to identify and treat this inflammatory skin monster. 

To start, let’s get clear about what perioral dermatitis is not: “It is not acne and it is not eczema, both of which it can get wrongly diagnosed as,” says Dr Gunatheesan. ?This is a particularly big issue when it comes ...