Eczema - neurodermatitis

Eczema - neurodermatitis

Eczema is an inflammatory but non-contagious skin disease characterized by itching, burning and redness. Some medical authorities consider eczema to be a group of related diseases. Others include in the group any inflammatory skin eruption of unknown cause, and they include many cases of skin disease in this category. The eruption occurs mainly on the face, neck, upper trunk and in the bends of the elbows and knees. It is common up to the age of twenty-five. Typical eczema begins with the “erythematous” stage with itching, burning and redness of the skin. Then, in the “vesicular” stage, blisters form on the reddened areas of skin, some or all of which may become filled with pus, which ruptures early and leaks clear or pussy fluid. During such oozing, the disease is often referred to as “crying” eczema. Normally, the blisters or pustules tend to dry out into scales or crusts. The dry-flaky stage is likely to last for a long time. At any stage, the affected skin areas usually have poorly defined borders. Significant itching and burning are unpleasant symptoms that occur as the disease progresses.

Local courses of eczema include: chemical irritants, including dyes, antiseptics, strong soaps and contact with plants; thermal irritants, including cold, strong wind and sun rays; mechanical irritants such as scratches, friction, pressure; and the effects of parasites. Some conditional conditions that can pave the way for eczema are: emotional or mental stress, inadequate rest, nutritional errors, digestive disorders, defective elimination, lower body resistance, inflammation of the kidneys and diabetes.

Many of those affected appear to have a particular individual skin sensitivity, which is often hereditary in nature. It can sometimes be detected through a series of skin sensitivity tests; but these usually don't fail. A careful examination of the patient's personal and family history is more likely to reveal the cause or causes. Food sensitivity is an occasional cause of eczema in infants, but this sensitivity tends to become much less pronounced in later years.

Eczema can be checked or cured in any of its stages, but each of its stages can also prove to be chronic and persistent.

For these reasons, the disease occurs in many forms. There are three goals in treatment:

(1) to eliminate the causes to the extent that they can be identified and remedied,

(2) to soothe the skin in acute or inflamed stages or forms, and

(3) To stimulate the skin to heal in the chronic stage or forms. However, this stimulation should always be mild. Using harsh or irritating agents does more harm than good. Hundreds of eczema remedies have been recommended, but no single remedy has been shown to be truly effective in more than a small proportion of cases. This most common of all skin diseases remains a persistent nuisance for its victims and a gnarly problem for its doctors.

WHAT TO DO

1. Regulate the bowels, preferably by eating lots of vegetables and fruits and drinking lots of water instead of using cathartics. However, it is best not to eat citrus fruits, strawberries and tomatoes, as many people are more or less sensitive to one or more of these products.

2. Remove from the diet all foods that experience has shown to be difficult to digest. Conduct a careful search - if possible with the help of a doctor - for foods or other substances to which the affected person may be sensitive internally or externally.

3. It is advisable to exclude sweets, pastries, sweets, chocolate and cocoa, fried foods, seafood, pork, milk, eggs, fish, shellfish and all or almost all salt from the diet. But it is worth remembering that, except in infancy, food is probably no longer a minor factor in causing or curing eczema.

4. Do not use tea, coffee or alcoholic drinks.

5. If possible, use some water and soap or cleanser on the affected skin areas. It is better to clean them with olive oil, especially if it is desirable to soften the crusts.

6. If hands are affected, it is advisable to wear rubber gloves if they have to be placed in water or soapy water.

7. If possible, avoid overwork, worry or sleep disturbances, lack of exercise or other exercises that reduce physical, mental or emotional strength.

8. In the acute stage of eczema, either of the erythematous (itching) or vesicular (weeping) type, try bandages or lotion during the day and a powder at night. For wet dressings, use Burow's solution diluted with 15 to 20 volumes of water. To make the lotion, mix equal parts olive oil and standard calamine lotion. For the powder, use the following:

Boric acid powder 2

Zinc oxide 10

Talcum powder 18

IMPORTANT!

Make every reasonable effort to see a dermatologist, especially for a baby with eczema.

This disease is often so resistant to treatment that special remedies may be required, some of which cannot be secured without a doctor's prescription.

Inspired by Emmanuel Abraham