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Dermatitis, also known as eczema, is inflammation of the skin. It is characterized by itchy, erythematous, vesicular, weeping, and crusting patches. The term eczema is also commonly used to describe atopic dermatitis[1][2] also known as atopic eczema.[3] In some languages, dermatitis and eczema are synonyms, while in other languages dermatitis implies an acute condition and eczema a chronic one.[4]

The cause of dermatitis is unclear.[5][6][7] One possibility is a dysfunctional interplay between the immune system and skin.[8]

The term eczema is broadly applied to a range of persistent skin conditions. These include dryness and recurring skin rashes that are characterized by one or more of these symptoms: redness, skin swelling, itching and dryness, crusting, flaking, blistering, cracking, oozing, or bleeding. Areas of temporary skin discoloration may appear and are sometimes due to healed injuries. Scratching open a healing lesion may result in scarring and may enlarge the rash.

Treatment is typically with moisturizers and steroid creams.[3] If these are not effective, creams based on calcineurin inhibitors may be used.[9] The disease was estimated as of 2010 to affect 230 million people globally (3.5% of the population).[10] While dermatitis is not life-threatening, a number of other illnesses have been linked to the condition, including osteoporosis, depression, and heart disease.[11][12]

The term "eczema" refers to a set of clinical characteristics. Classification of the underlying diseases has been haphazard and unsystematic, with many synonyms used to describe the same condition. A type of eczema may be described by location (e.g. hand eczema), by specific appearance (eczema craquele or discoid), or by possible cause (varicose eczema). Further adding to the confusion, many sources use the term eczema for the most common type of eczema (atopic dermatitis) interchangeably.

The European Academy of Allergology and Clinical Immunology (EAACI) published a position paper in 2001, which simplifies the nomenclature of allergy-related diseases including atopic and allergic contact eczemas.[13] Non-allergic eczemas are not affected by this proposal.

There are several different types of dermatitis. The different kinds usually have in common an allergic reaction to specific allergens. The term may describe eczema, which is also called dermatitis eczema and eczematous dermatitis. An eczema diagnosis often implies atopic dermatitis (which is very common in children and teenagers) but, without proper context, may refer to any kind of dermatitis.[14]

In some languages, dermatitis and eczema are synonyms, while in other languages dermatitis implies an acute condition and eczema a chronic one.[4] The two conditions are often classified together.

Dermatitis symptoms vary with all different forms of the condition. They range from skin rashes to bumpy rashes or including blisters. Although every type of dermatitis has different symptoms, there are certain signs that are common for all of them, including redness of the skin, swelling, itching and skin lesions with sometimes oozing and scarring. Also, the area of the skin on which the symptoms appear tends to be different with every type of dermatitis, whether on the neck, wrist, forearm, thigh or ankle. Although the location may vary, the primary symptom of this condition is itchy skin. More rarely, it may appear on the genital area, such as the vulva or scrotum.[16] Symptoms of this type of dermatitis may be very intense and may come and go. Irritant contact dermatitis is usually more painful than itchy.

Although the symptoms of atopic dermatitis vary from person to person, the most common symptoms are dry, itchy, red skin. Typical affected skin areas include the folds of the arms, the back of the knees, wrists, face and hands.

Dermatitis herpetiformis symptoms include itching, stinging and a burning sensation. Papules and vesicles are commonly present. The small red bumps experienced in this type of dermatitis are usually about 1cm in size, red in color and may be found symmetrically grouped or distributed on the upper or lower back, buttocks, elbows, knees, neck, shoulders, and scalp.[17] Less frequently, the rash may appear inside the mouth or near the hairline.

The symptoms of seborrheic dermatitis on the other hand, tend to appear gradually, from dry or greasy scaling of the scalp (dandruff) to hair loss. In severe cases, pimples may appear along the hairline, behind the ears, on the eyebrows, on the bridge of the nose, around the nose, on the chest, and on the upper back.[18] In newborns, the condition causes a thick and yellowish scalp rash, often accompanied by a diaper rash.

Perioral dermatitis refers to a red bumpy rash around the mouth.[19]

The cause of eczema is unknown but is presumed to be a combination of genetic and environmental factors.[20]

The hygiene hypothesis postulates that the cause of asthma, eczema, and other allergic diseases is an unusually clean environment. It is supported by epidemiologic studies for asthma.[21] The hypothesis states that exposure to bacteria and other immune system modulators is important during development, and missing out on this exposure increases risk for asthma and allergy.

While it has been suggested that eczema may sometimes be an allergic reaction to the excrement from house dust mites,[22] with up to 5% of people showing antibodies to the mites,[23] the overall role this plays awaits further corroboration.[24]

A number of genes have been associated with eczema, one of which is filaggrin.[3] Genome-wide studies found three new genetic variants associated with eczema: OVOL1, ACTL9 and IL4-KIF3A.[25]

Eczema occurs about three times more frequently in individuals with celiac disease and about two times more frequently in relatives of those with celiac disease, potentially indicating a genetic link between the two conditions.[26][27]

There is no good evidence that a mother's diet during pregnancy, the formula used, or breastfeeding changes the risk.[31] There is tentative evidence that probiotics in infancy may reduce rates but it is insufficient to recommend its use.[32]

People with eczema should not get the smallpox vaccination due to risk of developing eczema vaccinatum, a potentially severe and sometimes fatal complication.[33]

There is no known cure for eczema, with treatment aiming to control symptoms by reducing inflammation and relieving itching.

Bathing once or more a day is recommended.[3] It is a misconception that bathing dries the skin in people with eczema.[34] It is not clear whether dust mite reduction helps with eczema.

There has not been adequate evaluation of changing the diet to reduce eczema.[35][36] There is some evidence that infants with an established egg allergy may have a reduction in symptoms if eggs are eliminated from their diets.[35] Benefits have not been shown for other elimination diets, though the studies are small and poorly executed.[35][36] Establishing that there is a food allergy before dietary change could avoid unnecessary lifestyle changes.[35]

People can also wear clothing designed to manage the itching, scratching and peeling.[37]Soaps and detergents should not be used on affected skin because they can strip natural skin oils and lead to excessive dryness.

Moisturizing agents (also known as emollients) are recommended at least once or twice a day.[3] Oilier formulations appear to be better and water-based formulations are not recommended.[3] It is unclear if moisturizers that contain ceramides are more or less effective than others.[38] Products that contain dyes, perfumes, or peanuts should not be used.[3]Occlusive dressings at night may be useful.[3]

There is little evidence for antihistamine and they are thus not generally recommended.[3] Sedative antihistamines, such as diphenhydramine, may be tried in those who are unable to sleep due to eczema.[3]

If symptoms are well controlled with moisturizers, steroids may only be required when flares occur.[3]Corticosteroids are effective in controlling and suppressing symptoms in most cases.[39] Once daily use is generally enough.[3] For mild-moderate eczema a weak steroid may be used (e.g. hydrocortisone), while in more severe cases a higher-potency steroid (e.g. clobetasol propionate) may be used. In severe cases, oral or injectable corticosteroids may be used. While these usually bring about rapid improvements, they have greater side effects.

Long term use of topical steroids may result in skin atrophy, stria, telangiectasia.[3] Their use on delicate skin (face or groin) is therefore typically with caution.[3] They are, however, generally well tolerated.[40]

Topical steroid addiction (TSA) has been reported in long-term users of topical steroids (users who applied topical steroids to their skin over a period of weeks, months, or years).[41][42] TSA is characterised by uncontrollable, spreading dermatitis and worsening skin inflammation which requires a stronger topical steroid to get the same result as the first prescription. When topical steroid medication is lost, the skin experiences redness, burning, itching, hot skin, swelling, and/or oozing for a length of time. This is also called 'red skin syndrome' or 'topical steroid withdrawal'(TSW). After the withdrawal period is over the atopic dermatitis can cease or is less severe than it was before.[43]

Topical immunosuppressants like pimecrolimus and tacrolimus may be better in the short term and appear equal to steroids after a year of use.[44] Their use is reasonable in those who do not respond to or are not tolerant of steroids.[9] Treatments are typically recommended for short or fixed periods of time rather than indefinitely.[3] Tacrolimus 0.1% has generally proved more effective than picrolimus, and equal in effect to mid-potency topical steroids.[31]

The United States Food and Drug Administration has issued a health advisory a possible risk of lymph node or skin cancer from these products,[45] however subsequent research has not supported these concerns.[9] A major debate, in the UK, has been about the cost of these medications and, given only finite NHS resources, when they are most appropriate to use.[46]

When eczema is severe and does not respond to other forms of treatment, systemic immunosuppressants are sometimes used. Immunosuppressants can cause significant side effects and some require regular blood tests. The most commonly used are ciclosporin, azathioprine, and methotrexate.

Light therapy using ultraviolet light has tentative support but the quality of the evidence is not very good.[47] A number of different types of light may be used including UVA and UVB;[48] in some forms of treatment, light sensitive chemicals such as psoralen are also used. Overexposure to ultraviolet light carries its own risks, particularly that of skin cancer.[49]

There is currently no scientific evidence for the claim that sulfur treatment relieves eczema.[50] It is unclear whether Chinese herbs help or harm.[51] Dietary supplements are commonly used by people with eczema.[52] Neither evening primrose oil nor borage seed oil taken orally have been shown to be effective.[53] Both are associated with gastrointestinal upset.[53]Probiotics do not appear to be effective.[54] There is insufficient evidence to support the use of zinc, selenium, vitamin D, vitamin E, pyridoxine (vitamin B6), sea buckthorn oil, hempseed oil, sunflower oil, or fish oil as dietary supplements.[52]

Other remedies lacking evidential support include chiropractic spinal manipulation and acupuncture.[55] There is little evidence supporting the use of psychological treatments.[56] While dilute bleach baths have been used for infected dermatitis there is little evidence for this practice.[57]

Most cases are well managed with topical treatments and ultraviolet light.[3] About 2% of cases however are not.[3] In more than 60% the condition goes away by adolescence.[3]

Globally eczema affected approximately 230million people as of 2010 (3.5% of the population).[58] The lifetime clinician-recorded prevalence of eczema has been seen to peak in infancy, with female predominance of eczema presentations occurring during the reproductive period of 1549 years.[59] In the UK about 20% of children have the condition, while in the United States about 10% are affected.[3]

Although little data on the rates of eczema over time exists prior to the Second World War (193945), the rate of eczema has been found to have increased substantially in the latter half of the 20th Century, with eczema in school-aged children being found to increase between the late 1940s and 2000.[60] In the developed world there has been rise in the rate of eczema over time. The incidence and lifetime prevalence of eczema in England has been seen to increase in recent times.[3][61]

Dermatitis affected about 10% of U.S. workers in 2010, representing over 15 million workers with dermatitis. Prevalence rates were higher among females than among males, and among those with some college education or a college degree compared to those with a high school diploma or less. Workers employed in healthcare and social assistance industries and life, physical, and social science occupations had the highest rates of reported dermatitis. About 6% of dermatitis cases among U.S. workers were attributed to work by a healthcare professional, indicating that the prevalence rate of work-related dermatitis among workers was at least 0.6%.[62]

from Ancient Greek kzema,[63] from - ekz-ein, from ek "out" + - z-ein "to boil"

The term "atopic dermatitis" was coined in 1933 by Wise and Sulzberger.[64]Sulfur as a topical treatment for eczema was fashionable in the Victorian and Edwardian eras.[50]

The word dermatitis is from the Greek derma "skin" and - -itis "inflammation" and eczema is from Greek: ekzema "eruption".

The terms "hypoallergenic" and "doctor tested" are not regulated,[65] and no research has been done showing that products labeled "hypoallergenic" are in fact less problematic than any others.

Read more:
Dermatitis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Edit: I have found a cream that clears up my eye eczema and has also helped many others. Please scroll down to the bottom of the post for this if you don't want to read my whole story and just want to find out what got rid of the eczema.

This is a bit of a different post from me today, and is quite a personal one and something I'm really self-conscious and sensitive about. It's going to be very long, and have some really gross photos towards the end. But I hope you'll continue reading, because I hope that someone out there will be able to help me somehow, or will know someone who can help me.

I've had eczema for as long as I can remember. There isn't a time where I can't remember having it. When I was younger I would always get it under my knees and in the inside of my elbows, and I had to bathe in E45emollient. It would usually strike during Autumn and Winter when the heating came on and cold weather arrived, and for some reason when I was a child seawater also flared it up (thankfully I seemed to grow out of this!).

Anyway, nothing has ever really worked for it, I've always had to just bear with it and let it run its course until it went down by itself. Although the bath emollient worked, the E45 cream has never worked, and I feel as though I've tried every product out there, from natural to chemical. The only good thing about it being under my knees and in my elbows, was that I could cover it up with clothing, so no one had to see it.

When I was 14 I finally found the perfect solution. I was back in Australia for a holiday and we went down to Albany for a week. We visited the Sandalwood Factory down there and I found Mount Romance Damage Control. At the time I was suffering from eczema really badly, and within a few hours of using the Damage Control oil, it was already going down. I also had a huge patch on my left wrist, it was so sore it looked diseased, it was a huge spread of eczema all across my wrist and was so dry it was cracking and bleeding. After a couple of days of applying Damage Control every hour, it had completely disappeared.

Then disaster struck. I started getting eczema on my eyelids and under-eye. I couldn't hide this with clothing. It was on show for all to see, and it was humiliating. My eyes were bright red and cracked - it looked as though there was something seriously wrong with me. Despite the Damage Control telling me not to use it on eyes, I did, and it worked. It stung like hell, but it worked.

A couple of years ago I had allergy tests done, and I discovered the reason behind my eczema. I'm allergic to mould. This also explains why my asthma is worse during autumn. Asthma and eczema are connected, and the mould flares them both up. During autumn when the leaves fall off the trees, they decay on the ground and mould spores rise into the air, getting into your lungs and going onto your skin. For those who are allergic, it's a nightmare, and different people have different reactions to it.

About two months ago my eczema on my eyes flared up again, but this time the Damage Control didn't work. My trusty saviour for the past seven years failed me, and I needed something else that would work ASAP. Incredibly painful, itchy and completelyunsightly, my eyes were red raw with the skin flaking off, and I was waking up with my eyes completely swollen. I spent ages sitting there with a bag of frozen peas on them before leaving for work, and as you can imagine, my tube journeys to work involved me keeping my head down. I felt myself constantly worrying about what people were thinking when they looked at me.

A couple of weeks ago I found the E45 Intensive Recovery for 'very dry skin', and to be honest, it's amazing. I've been using it regularly on my eyelids for the past few days, and they're back to being smooth. But today I read an article on the chemicals inside it, and learnt that some of them are actually very toxic. I'm furious, absolutely fuming, that the Doctor told me to put this on my EYES of all places! Not only does E45 contain Sodium Sulphate's, but it also contains Propylparaben, which is an irritant that even has links to causing cancer.

So I'm back to square one. I need to stop using the E45, and once again I need to find something else that's natural and organic. The problem is I don't know where to start, which brand to trust, and I honestly can't afford to keep spending all this money on products I use a few times before realizing they're not going to work or are making it worse. Not only is it horrible and disgusting to look at, but it's incredibly painful. The constant pain and itch stresses me out, and when it's particularly bad I can feel my heart racing from the stress. It's truly horrible.

I also need to use completely natural eye make-up from now on, as I've discovered all of my normal eye make-up (eyeshadow, eyeliner), are all full of those nasty chemicals that irritate my eczema. But just like with the skincare products, I just can't afford to keep buying products unless I know that they'll definitely work.

So if any PR companies that deal with organic/natural skincare and make-up brands that I can use on my eyes, feel like sending me any products to test and review for them, I would be eternally grateful. And just think, if your product works...I'll be a customer for life, as this allergy and issue isn't going to go away any time soon! And fellow bloggers, if you know of any brands that could help me, please let me know!

PS: Just so any newbies don't think I'm completely hideous and abnormal, here's a photo of me looking normal. I know, shocking difference eh.

Please click 'subscribe' on my Youtube below if this post & video has helped you:

Read more here:
Lux Life - UK Lifestyle Blog: My Struggle With Eye Eczema.