Dyshydrotic eczema
Dyshydrotic eczema (dyshydrosis) is a common form of eczema in humans, refers to skin diseases and is an eczematous dermatitis, but complicated by relapses and chronic course. Dyshydrotic eczema appears on the feet and hands, and its external signs are rashes on the skin of small bubbles of a transparent appearance, localized both in groups and singly.
The content of the article:
Causes of dyshydrotic eczema
Symptoms of dyshydrotic eczema
Diagnosis of dyshidrotic eczema
Treatment of dyshidrotic eczema
Dyshydrotic eczema
Medicine still cannot accurately determine the mechanism that triggers the development of dyshidrotic eczema, but to date, certain factors have been identified that can provoke the disease in any person. They should be eliminated first of all in the treatment of this type of eczema.
As for the rashes themselves, in the overwhelming majority of cases, dyshydrotic eczema is observed on the patient’s hands — this is 80% of all manifestations. The remaining 20% is eczema that forms on the soles of the feet. Women suffer from the disease at an earlier age, about 23-25 years old, men — at a later age, about 40 years. Both sexes have an equal chance of the occurrence of this disease.
Initial observations of the development of eczema turned out to be incorrect, as experts associated the disease with clogging of the sweat glands, but later it turned out that this was a clear misconception, since the functionality of the glands in dyshidrotic eczema remained normal.
Causes of dyshydrotic eczema
There are several obvious and studied causes that contribute to the occurrence and development of dyshidrotic eczema, such as:
violation of the immune system;
allergic reaction;
heredity and predisposition to the occurrence of the disease;
violation of the function of the nervous system;
violation of the function of the endocrine system;
violation of the gastrointestinal tract;
metabolic disorders;
vegetative-vascular dystonia.
The state of the patient’s nervous system plays a huge role in the development of dyshidrotic eczema. When a patient has severe stress, the existing eczema can become active. Obviously, people predisposed to eczema should monitor their state of mental balance. It also increases the likelihood of eczema in those patients in whose family there were people suffering from hay fever, bronchial asthma or atopic dermatitis.
Various allergic manifestations provoke the appearance of rashes. Skin lesions can be observed in cases where a person has direct contact with household chemicals. The cause of dyshydrotic eczema may also be hidden in the use of certain products to which the patient is allergic. It is worth noting that the acute course of the disease can be caused by the components of products that we buy in stores, these are so-called food allergens. In some cases, the cause may also be hyperhidrosis — increased sweating.
Symptoms of dyshydrotic eczema
The symptomatic picture of this disease is mainly represented by an eczematous rash, in which vesicles appear located in the deep layers of the epidermis. Most often, these rashes are placed on the soles of the feet, hands, between the fingers and are accompanied by debilitating itching.
The bubbles, which are skin rashes, usually do not exceed 5 mm in size, there is a transparent liquid inside them. After a while, these bubbles burst, after which a small erosion forms in place of each vesicle. Together, all of them can occupy a fairly significant area, since the bubbles are located quite tightly to each other. Over time, the erosion begins to tighten, forming a thick brown crust.
Dyshydrotic eczema is a chronic disease, so the affected areas of the skin will subsequently undergo various changes: peeling, redness, cracking. The skin itself at the site of damage becomes much thicker and rougher.
Cracks at the site of erosion can serve as sites through which further infection occurs. For example, staphylococci or other microorganisms penetrate into the cracks. In the future, the infected organism risks experiencing more serious manifestations of the disease. Such secondary symptoms include fever, purulent erosions, as well as enlarged lymph nodes and swelling. With such a symptomatic picture, areas with skin lesions turn out to be quite painful at any touch.
Dyshydrotic eczema can develop over several months. Its manifestations are observed mainly in spring and early summer, when the body’s immunity is weakened due to vitamin deficiency. At the same time, eczema manifests itself in a chronic form.
Diagnosis of dyshidrotic eczema
Doctors can diagnose dyshydrotic eczema visually. Vesicle rashes on the skin clearly indicate the presence and development of the disease as such, so additional diagnosis is practically not required. Accordingly, after examining a patient with signs of dyshydrotic eczema, treatment is prescribed immediately.
Sometimes the clinical picture of the disease may resemble a fungal lesion of the soles (epidermophytia). In these cases, there may be keratinization of the skin, cracks on the feet, nail pathology, diaper rash. In this case, an additional diagnosis is carried out by taking a scrape to study the presence of fungus. Such an analysis accurately determines whether the disease is dyshidrotic eczema or psoriasis, contact dermatitis or another disease.
Treatment of dyshidrotic eczema
There are no universal ways to treat dyshidrotic eczema. The doctor prescribes an individual course of treatment for each patient. The difficulty lies in the careful selection of funds, depending on the state of the patient’s health and on what stage the disease is at.
In this situation, it is very important to find out the causes that provoked the occurrence of eczema. Perhaps the endocrine or nervous system is not in order, the functionality of some internal organ is disrupted. Only after the original cause of the disease has been eliminated, the doctor can begin to treat skin lesions.
The course of therapy, as a rule, includes the appointment of various physiotherapy procedures: UHF, paraffin treatment, laser therapy, acupuncture, electrophoresis, magnetotherapy, ultraviolet irradiation.
Taking medications for this disease consists of medications of hyposensitizing, anti-inflammatory, antihistamine properties. The patient may be prescribed “Calcium gluconate”, “Tavegil”, “Magnesium sulfate”, “Suprastin”, “Pipolfen”.
If the form of the disease is severe, then the doctor, in addition to these medications, may recommend taking glucocorticosteroid medications combined with diuretics and hemodesis. However, there is a danger that the patient may develop dependence on steroids and complications may occur. In order to avoid all problems, the course of treatment should not be prolonged.
The use of various ointments and gels is effective in the treatment process, and the rubbing can be hormonal. Their use is indicated in the initial stages of the disease, when the rashes are not large-scale.
