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Dr. Andrew Rynne
MD
Dr. Andrew Rynne

Family Physician

Exp 50 years

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How Can Eczema Be Treated?

Hi, my friends brother is 16 and suffers from bad eczema. I m not sure what he s tried, dermeze if I can name one, hasn t tried savlon that I know of and he barely showers because he s in such pain when under the water. What can I do to help? It may sound very mean, but I can t handle living in the same house as someone in such pain, screaming all the time. As I said he s 16 so he isn t really listening to either me or my boyfriend or his sister and her ex boyfriend. To say the least the moans of pain are getting too hard to handle.
Wed, 2 Nov 2016
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General & Family Physician,  's  Response
Hi, hope your friend's brother has seen a dermatologist as Eczema patients need a lot of counselling as this ailment can only be controlled and not cured.
Usually it starts in the childhood age and disappears as the child reaches his teen age or adolescence.
Since eczema is an inflammation of skin with severe itching, anti-inflammatory and anti-histaminics form the mainstay of the therapy.
Would recommend Fexofenadine 180mg tab once a day for 7 days
For local application, would suggest Emollient (moisturiser), this should prevent the skin from being dry and and prevent developing inflammation.
Apply liberally to the affected areas.
In bad cases such as this one, would have added mild topical steroid as well to my patients (Hydrocortisone cream 1%)
As mentioned earlier, in Eczema prevention and controlling the disease should be the foremost thing.
For this, the patient needs to be vigilant and notice when does the symptoms flare up and has to avoid all the triggering factors.
Avoid soaps, bubble baths, etc. They can dry out the skin and make it more prone to irritation. Instead, use a soap substitute plus a bath/shower moisturiser (emollient)
Try as much as possible not to scratch. To help with this, keep nails short. If one needs to relieve an itch, rub with fingers rather than scratch with nails.
Wear cotton clothes next to skin rather than irritating fabrics such as wool. However, it is probably the smoothness of the material rather than the type of the material which helps. Some smooth man-made fabrics are probably just as good as cotton.
Avoid getting too hot or too cold as extremes of temperature can irritate the skin.
House dust, pollen and food allergy may be a trigger in some cases.
If things still become worse then please consult a dermatologist as there are chances of secondary infection and it needs to be controlled by the proper use of antibiotics.
Although quite a lengthy answer, but hope it answers your query and please be patient and these kind of patients need assurances more than our irritations.
Thanks and take care.
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How Can Eczema Be Treated?

Hi, hope your friend s brother has seen a dermatologist as Eczema patients need a lot of counselling as this ailment can only be controlled and not cured. Usually it starts in the childhood age and disappears as the child reaches his teen age or adolescence. Since eczema is an inflammation of skin with severe itching, anti-inflammatory and anti-histaminics form the mainstay of the therapy. Would recommend Fexofenadine 180mg tab once a day for 7 days For local application, would suggest Emollient (moisturiser), this should prevent the skin from being dry and and prevent developing inflammation. Apply liberally to the affected areas. In bad cases such as this one, would have added mild topical steroid as well to my patients (Hydrocortisone cream 1%) As mentioned earlier, in Eczema prevention and controlling the disease should be the foremost thing. For this, the patient needs to be vigilant and notice when does the symptoms flare up and has to avoid all the triggering factors. Avoid soaps, bubble baths, etc. They can dry out the skin and make it more prone to irritation. Instead, use a soap substitute plus a bath/shower moisturiser (emollient) Try as much as possible not to scratch. To help with this, keep nails short. If one needs to relieve an itch, rub with fingers rather than scratch with nails. Wear cotton clothes next to skin rather than irritating fabrics such as wool. However, it is probably the smoothness of the material rather than the type of the material which helps. Some smooth man-made fabrics are probably just as good as cotton. Avoid getting too hot or too cold as extremes of temperature can irritate the skin. House dust, pollen and food allergy may be a trigger in some cases. If things still become worse then please consult a dermatologist as there are chances of secondary infection and it needs to be controlled by the proper use of antibiotics. Although quite a lengthy answer, but hope it answers your query and please be patient and these kind of patients need assurances more than our irritations. Thanks and take care.