medical uses of salicylic acid medical uses of salicylic acid salicylic acid is used as a medicine to help remove the outer layer of the skin. as such it is used to treat warts, skin tags, calluses, psoriasis, dandruff, acne, ringworm, and ichthyosis. for conditions other than warts, it is often used together with other medications. it is applied to the area affected. salicylic acidcotton pads soaked in salicylic acid for medical useclinical datatrade namesvarious trade namesahfs/drugs.commultum consumer informationroutes ofadministrationtopicalatc coded01ae12 (who) legal statuslegal status us: otc pharmacokinetic databioavailabilitylowidentifierscas number69-72-7pubchem cid338drugbankdb00936chemspider331uniio414pz4lpzchemical and physical dataformulac7h6o3molar mass138.122 g·mol−13d model (jsmol)interactive image smiles c1ccc(c(c1)c(=o)o)o inchi inchi=1s/c7h6o3/c8-6-4-2-1-3-5(6)7(9)10/h1-4,8h,(h,9,10)key:ygsdefsmjlzeoe-uhfffaoysa-n side effects include skin irritation, and salicylate poisoning. salicylate poisoning tends to only occur when applied to a large area and in children. use is thus not recommended in children less than two years old. it comes in a number of different strengths. it is on the world health organization's list of essential medicines. it is also available mixed with coal tar, zinc oxide, or benzoic acid. medical uses salicylic acid as a medication is used to help remove the outer layer of the skin. as such it is used to treat warts, calluses, psoriasis, dandruff, acne, ringworm, and ichthyosis. because of its effect on skin cells, salicylic acid is used in some shampoos to treat dandruff. in modern medicine, salicylic acid and its derivatives are constituents of some "skin-reddening" products. side effects concentrated solutions of salicylic acid may cause hyperpigmentation on people with darker skin types (fitzpatrick phototypes iv, v, vi), without a broad spectrum sunblock. due to sun sensitivity, sun protection is recommended when using salicylic acid on sun-exposed skin. pregnancy no studies examine topical salicylic acid in pregnancy. the risks of aspirin late in pregnancy are probably not relevant for a topical exposure to salicylic acid, even late in the pregnancy, because of its low systemic levels. topical salicylic acid is common in many over-the-counter dermatological agents and the lack of adverse reports suggests a low risk. overdose side effects include skin irritation, and salicylate poisoning. salicylate poisoning tends to only occur when applied to a large area and in children. use is thus not recommended in children less than two years old. it comes in a number of different strengths. salicylic acid overdose can lead metabolic acidosis with compensatory respiratory alkalosis. in people presenting with an acute overdose, a 16% morbidity rate and a 1% mortality rate are observed. mechanism of action