Eczema (Greek ‘Ekzein’, to ’boil over’) is a skin condition that causes your skin to become red, dry, itchy and bumpy as well as inflamed. Eczema makes your skin more sensitive and weakens your skin’s natural barrier, making it harder to hold in moisture and keeping out things like germs, dirt, and irritants.
It is a common, chronic skin condition where it can appear time to time in the affected areas and it is not life threatening.
Everyone’s eczema can look a little different, but here are the most common signs:
Very dry or rough patches of skin
Redness or dark spots
Super itchy areas (sometimes you can't stop scratching)
Cracks, bleeding, or oozing if it gets really bad
Thickened, bumpy, or leathery skin if you’ve had it for a long time
Infants and young children it often appears on the face, cheeks, scalp, and the outside of the elbows and knees.
In older children, it may shift to the inside of the elbows, behind the knees, wrists, and ankles.
In adults eczema is more likely to appear on the hands, feet, arms, and the bends of the elbows and knees.
but really, it can appear anywhere.
Where it shows up: Anywhere on the body, but usually on the face, neck, and behind the knees or elbows.
What it looks like: Red, dry, itchy patches of skin.
Cause: Often linked to allergies, asthma, or a family history of eczema.
Where it shows up: Areas where there hair, like scalp, eyebrows, chest and groins.
What it looks like: Red, flaky, greasy patches of skin.
Cause: Linked to an overgrowth of yeast on the skin, usually triggered by stress or weather changes.
Where it shows up: Legs, arms, and torso.
What it looks like: Round, coin-shaped patches of itchy, dry skin.
Cause: Can be triggered by skin injury, cold weather, or even stress.
Where it shows up: Usually on the lower legs, arms, or torso.
What it looks like: Dry, cracked, and flaky skin, sometimes with itching.
Cause: Caused by extremely dry skin, usually worsened by cold or dry weather.
Where it shows up: Lower legs, especially around the ankles.
What it looks like: Redness, swelling, and sometimes skin ulcers or sores.
Cause: Poor blood circulation, often related to varicose veins or other circulation issues.
Irritant Contact Dermatitis: Caused by things like soaps, chemicals, or cleaning products.
Allergic Contact Dermatitis: Caused by common allergens like
Metals: Eg. Nickel commonly used in jewellery, clips, watches and industrial substances Chromium causes footwear and cement dermatitis.
Plants
Antibacterial agents
Rubber chemicals
Hair dyes
Various cosmetics and personal care products due to presence of fragrance and preservatives.
Where it shows up: Anywhere the skin comes in contact with the irritant or allergen.
What it looks like: Redness, itching, or even blisters at the spot that came in contact with the irritant.
It develops due exposure to sunlight or other forms of UV radiation. It can be a form of allergic contact dermatitis where the allergen needs UV light to activate and cause a reaction. The common photosensitising agents are drugs, cosmetics, perfumes, dyes, etc.
Myth: Eczema is contagious.
Wrong!
You can't catch eczema from someone else, and no one can catch it from you.It’s not an infection — it’s an issue with the skin and immune system.
Myth: Eczema happens because of poor hygiene.
Totally false!
Cleanliness has nothing to do with it. In fact, over-washing with harsh soaps can actually make eczema worse!
Myth: Scratching eczema will make it go away.
Not true!
Scratching feels good for a second but actually makes things worse. It can damage your skin, cause infections, and make healing take longer.
Myth: Eczema is just dry skin.
Way more complicated than that!
While dry skin is a big part of it, eczema also involves inflammation, a weak skin barrier, and sometimes allergies. It's not just about needing more lotion — though moisturizing does help a lot!
Myth: If you find the "one" cause, you can get rid of eczema forever.
Sadly, no.
Eczema usually has multiple causes — like genetics, environment, allergies, weather, and stress. Its not just one thing you can fix.
Myth: You can cure eczema with the right lotion.
Unfortunately, not yet.
There is no complete cure for eczema right now. Good moisturizers can help control symptoms, but managing eczema often takes a full skincare routine, lifestyle changes, and consulting a Dermatologist.
Myth: Eczema only affects kids.
Nope!
While it is common in babies and children, adults can get eczema too — even for the very first time! Eczema in nearly half of children disappears or experience improvement by the time they grow up.
Your treatment for eczema is unique to you and what caused your symptoms to flare up. Ways to control eczema could include:
Consult a Dermatologist for using gentle or sensitive skin moisturizers throughout the day when you have dry skin.
Apply topical medications to your skin as advised by your Dermatologist, like topical steroids if needed.
Take oral medications as prescribed by your Dermatologist to reduce itchiness and swelling.
Take baths or showers with warm, not hot, water.
Avoid triggers:Figure out what makes your eczema worse (like certain soaps or fabrics) and try to avoid them.
Stay hydrated and drink at least eight glasses of water each day. Water helps keep your skin moist.
Wear loose clothes made of cotton and other natural materials. Wash new clothing before wearing it. Avoid wool or synthetic fibers.
Manage your stress and emotional triggers.
Do not self medicate or depend on home remedies.
Earlier initiation of treatment and long term follow up has better long-term outcomes.
Disclaimer: This article is only for general patient information and is not intended for self medication. There is no legal liability of IADVL arising out of any adverse consequence to the patient. Subsequent to its use for self treatment of the disease images adjust for the depiction of the condition and is not to be used for any other purpose.
Adult atopic may continue in the flexural pattern(as that of school going children )or become diffuse. Loss of eyebrow hair, folds under the eyes, raised black bumps on the skin are all clues to atopic dermatitis. Some occupations that expose one to cement, pollen, sawdust, or cleaning agents may lead to specific patterns of dermatitis on the hands, feet or uncovered areas of the body. Certain medications can also worsen symptoms.
Explore articles in this section to gain a deeper understanding of various skin diseases and conditions. Each article provides detailed information on symptoms, causes, and treatment options, helping you to manage and address these dermatological issues effectively.
Psoriasis is a skin condition where new skin forms at a faster rate, showing up as red rashes with whitish scales, commonly over elbows, knees, and other body parts.
Dandruff is a common scalp condition in which small pieces of dry skin flake off from the scalp and is usually associated with itching. The exact cause of Dandruff and Seborrhoeic Dermatitis is unknown.
Dermatophyte infection is a superficial fungal infection of skin, hair and nails. It is also known as ringworm. In Hindi it is termed as Daad and in Marathi it is termed as Gachkaran.
