"Do you have anything for Eczema?" Part 1.

“Do you have anything for Eczema?”

I get asked this question a lot. So, I thought I’d address a little about this topic. First, let’s go over what Eczema is:

Eczema is a skin condition where the skin becomes inflamed and irritated. There are several different types, but the most common is atopic and is often accompanied by different allergic tendencies, i.e. Asthma and hay fever. Also, Eczema is often inherited, so if your mother of father had it, you have a high chance of having to deal with the condition yourself.

It is seen more in infants then adults as the great majority grow out of it. And those that continue to have issues with it in adulthood have a great chance of being symptom free with proper treatment.

It usually starts as a rash that is itchy and is most commonly found on the face, behind the knees and on the back of the hands, wrist or feet.  It can be simply red patchy spots that can look thick on the edges, or can ooze in the middle. If you are fair skinned, the affected area will look red or pink and if you are dark skin, the affected areas tend to be lighter than the surrounding areas.

Although it is not 100% established what causes Eczema, it is believed that the body is just overacting to outside stimuli. This paired with the fact that the skin is not doing its full job of moisturizing and creating a barrier to infection are what lead to the patches and sores.  It is a condition that has no known cure, but like I mentioned earlier, most cases can be managed with proper treatment.

Like a lot of other atopic conditions, Eczema has a wide range of things that can cause it to flare. There is a set-in-stone list, and this will vary from person to person, but there are a few common factors

·         Rough material

·         Getting too hot or too cold

·         Household detergents or soaps

·         Getting a cold or upper respiratory infection

·         Pet dander

Diagnosis is usually done with a simple visual inspection of the affected area by a pediatrician or family doctor. Sometimes an allergy test is the next step, more so to find out what may irritate the condition, rather than to confirm the diagnosis.

Tomorrow we will touch a bit more on what treatment looks like and what you can do about it.