Atopic Dermatitis

Atopic dermatitis, sometimes called eczema, is a kind of dermatitis, an atopic skin disease.

Presentation

Skin of an affected person reacts to irritants, food and air allergens and becomes red, flaky and very itchy. It also becomes vulnerable to inflamations caused by bacteria. Joints (for example inner sides of elbows and knees) are most commonly affected regions.

Atopic dermatitis very often occurs together with other atopic diseases like hay fever, asthma and conjunctivitis. It is a chronic disease and its symptoms can grow or disappear over time. There is no cure for it, but its symptoms can be diminished with various treatments.

Originally controversial, the association of food allergy with atopic dermatitis has now been clearly demonstrated, especially in severe disease of infancy.

Atopic dermatitis is often mistaken with psoriasis.

Treatment

The severity can be reduced by minimising drying of the skin and avoiding or minimising contact with known allergens. The issue of allergies often complicates a case of atopic dermatitis.

Topical treatment (those applied onto the skin) centre around reducing the dryness of the skin. Moisturisers (also known as Emollients) are available from a pharmacist or on prescription.

Most soaps wash away the oils produced by the skin that normally serve to prevent drying. Using a soap substitute such as aqueous cream helps keep the skin moisturised.

If moisturisers on their own don't help, topical steroid ointments or creams may be used. These are safe to use provided they are prescribed by a doctor.

Although many people are intimidated by the term 'steroids', their proper use can result in atopic dermatitis being brought under control, making the disease far more bearable for the sufferers.

Alternative medicines may (illegally) contain very strong steroids (Ramsay H M, Goddard W, Gill S, Moss C.

Herbal creams used for atopic eczema in Birmingham, UK illegally contain potent corticosteroids. Archives of Disease in Childhood 2003; 88:1056-1057).

New survey reveals dramatic fall in symptoms of atopic dermatitis in children ... - Your-Story.org (press release) New survey reveals dramatic fall in symptoms of atopic dermatitis in children ... Your-Story.org (press release) (or 2/3 reporting a dramatic improvement in sleep pattern) One of the most distressing side effects of atopic dermatitis is the unbearable itch. The survey showed that before using the product 67 families reported that their child suffered the highest ... and more » Thu, 02 Feb 2012 14:58:37 GMT What's Making My Nipple Itch Like Crazy, and What Should I Do? - WebMD (blog) What's Making My Nipple Itch Like Crazy, and What Should I Do? WebMD (blog) That would be Atopic Dermatitis (AD), also known as eczema. With this condition itching is almost always present and can be severe. Itching may even precede the development of an overt rash. The rash can include small blisters with oozing or crusting. Mon, 06 Feb 2012 20:32:30 GMT Mission Pharmacal buys cream - San Antonio Express Mission Pharmacal buys cream San Antonio Express The nonsteroidal Eletone Cream is used to treat atopic dermatitis, an itchy skin disorder. Mission has targeted expansion in the dermatology market. It has launched a dermatology focused sales team through its recently introduced subsidiary Alamo ... Mission Pharmacal Acquires Eletone Cream from Ferndale Healthcare, Inc.MarketWatch (press release) all 12 news articles » Fri, 03 Feb 2012 23:50:28 GMT Amorphous silica nanoparticles size-dependently aggravate atopic dermatitis ... - 7thSpace Interactive (press release) Amorphous silica nanoparticles size-dependently aggravate atopic dermatitis ... 7thSpace Interactive (press release) Thus, in this study, we investigated the relationship between the size of SPs and adjuvant activity using a model for atopic dermatitis. Results: We investigated the effects of nSPs on the AD induced by intradermaly injected-mite antigen ... Thu, 02 Feb 2012 02:33:57 GMT Erectile Dysfunction Linked to Atopic Dermatitis - Renal and Urology News Erectile Dysfunction Linked to Atopic Dermatitis Renal and Urology News Men with erectile dysfunction (ED) are more likely to have had prior atopic dermatitis (AD) than men without ED, according to study findings published online in the Journal of Sexual Medicine. Investigators led by Herng-Ching Lin, PhD, ... Thu, 19 Jan 2012 13:16:04 GMT Mission Pharmacal buys Ferndale Eletone cream - Pharmaceutical Business Review Mission Pharmacal buys Ferndale Eletone cream Pharmaceutical Business Review The US Food and Drug Administration approved Eletone Cream is a non-steroidal, barrier cream for the long term treatment of atopic dermatitis, an inflammatory, chronically relapsing, non-contagious and pruritic or itchy skin disorder. Mon, 06 Feb 2012 08:19:42 GMT Acne Inversa Patients Face Sexual Distress - Skin and Allergy News Digital Network Acne Inversa Patients Face Sexual Distress Skin and Allergy News Digital Network Prior studies have found that AI patients had a lower quality of life than did patients with other chronic skin diseases, including acne vulgaris, psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, alopecia, Darier's disease, and morbus Hailey-Hailey, according to the ... Mon, 06 Feb 2012 18:22:44 GMT Multi-locus stepwise regression: a haplotype-based algorithm for finding ... - 7thSpace Interactive (press release) Multi-locus stepwise regression: a haplotype-based algorithm for finding ... 7thSpace Interactive (press release) Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) provide an increasing number of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with diseases. Our aim is to exploit those closely spaced SNPs in candidate regions for a deeper analysis of association beyond ... Fri, 27 Jan 2012 13:32:33 GMT Provectus Receives Guidance From FDA On Pathway to Approval for Phase 3 Trial ... - MarketWatch (press release) Provectus Receives Guidance From FDA On Pathway to Approval for Phase 3 Trial ... MarketWatch (press release) Its dermatological drug PH-10 also targets abnormal or diseased cells, with the current focus on psoriasis and atopic dermatitis. Provectus has recently completed Phase 2 trials of PV-10 as a therapy for metastatic melanoma, and of PH-10 as a topical ... and more » Wed, 18 Jan 2012 11:03:48 GMT Itch, rash, go away! - Manila Bulletin Itch, rash, go away! Manila Bulletin According to Dr. Palabyab-Rufino, the most common skin problems that babies and very young children experience and that doctors like her encounter are atopic dermatitis or skin asthma, seborrheic dermatitis or cradle cap dermatitis, ... Fri, 13 Jan 2012 17:09:11 GMT Page:  1