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What Causes Contact Dermatitis?

Posted on Mon, 13 Jul 2015

Question: What causes you to have itchy skin from time to time? It is itch here, itch there sometimes at night. I thought I might be somewhat allergic to seafood ,especially shrimp. But I have itching sometimes after eating shrimp that evening and other times not. I am at a loss to figure the reason.

Answered by Dr. Dr. Muhammad Sareer Khalil (2 hours later)

Brief Answer:
RAST, Skin Prick test

Detailed Answer:
Hello and Welcome

I appreciate your concern

For food allergies two investigations are useful. These are RAST test i.e. Radioallergosorbent test and the Skin Prick test. For contact dermatitis the skin patch test would be an option. In the meanwhile , you should keep a food log and identify food or allergens e.g. certain clothes , soap etc that trigger such responses. Such allergens should be avoided completely. Anti-histamines like cetirizine and fexofenadine can be prescribed for a month. Oral corticosteroids can be added for a two week course if anti histamines alone aren't effective in consultation with your doctor. Montelukast, omalizumab etc can be resorted to, in certain selected cases.

Wishing you best of health

Thanks

Please consult your doctor before deciding on any further course of action.

For future follow up / correspondence you may ask me directly at the link given below

http://doctor.healthcaremagic.com/Funnel?page=askDoctorDirectly&docId=68107

Dr. M.S. Khalil

Note: Hope the answers resolves your concerns, however for further guidance of skin related queries consult our Dermatologist.Click here to book a consultation

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar