Seborrhoeic Eczema

• Usually affects the scalp, eyebrows and other parts of the face
• Can be associated with other skin conditions like and psoriasis

Pompholyx

• Affects the hands or feet
• Bumpy itchy skin, usually on the sides of the fingers or toes
• Usually worse when sweating
• Sometimes follows direct contact with nickel
• Can be triggered by stress
• Often no cause found

Photodermatitis

• Occurs as a reaction to the UV light in sunshine
• Characteristically appears only on the area of skin exposed to the sun

Perioral Dermatitis

• Mostly affects women
• White spots and redness around the mouth
• Treatment is with antibiotics (usually applied to the skin directly)

Discoid Eczema

• Also known as Annular or Nummular Eczema
• Scattered patches (often round)
• Cause is unknown

Venous Eczema

• Also known as stasis, gravitational or leg eczema
• Develops in people with swollen legs
• The skin gets darker and itchier as the legs swell

How common is Eczema?

• In Australia approximately 1 in 5 children have Eczema
• Approximately 3% of adults have Eczema

What can I do to make my Eczema better?

Changes to how you wash

• Use a soft towel and pat yourself dry (rather than rubbing)
• Avoid using soaps – try using oily moisturiser instead
• Don’t use bubble bath
• Add unfragranced oils to your bath

Changes to your clothes

• Use sensitive-skin detergents in your washing machine
• Allow only cotton to be in direct contact with your skin wherever possible

Changes to how you moisturise

• Use moisturiser as often as possible, particularly after washing
• Use moisturisers that are unfragranced
• Switch between moisturisers until you find one that works well for you
  • Usually oily moisturisers are more effective but they may not be absorbed as easily
  • You don’t need to buy expensive moisturiser – cheap moisturisers are just as good

Other measures

• Stay well-hydrated
• Install an air humidifier where you live/work/sleep

Commonly used medications

• Antihistamines
  • For itching
• Topical steroid creams & ointments- these should be used at the lowest effective strength as they can cause significant side-effects. They should only be used in addition to the measures described earlier.
• Antibiotics- if skin infection is thought to be playing a part in the Eczema
• “Occlusion dressing”- the practice of applying moisturiser thickly under cotton bandages & gloves to treat eczema in children

• Less-commonly used medications, usually under the guidance of a specialist include:
  • Ultraviolet light therapy
  • Coal tar ointment
  • Immunosuppressant medications

Article Resources

www.allergy.org.au

www.rch.org