Has your child ever been diagnosed with eczema?

After the initial diagnosis by your doctor, was your first question  “what is eczema?”

If so, you’re not alone, this is a fairly typical and understandable common response when some patients are told they or a family member has eczema. Although eczema has been around for many years, it’s not untypical to discover that many people still wonder exactly what is eczema.

Put simply, Eczema is a skin condition whose symptoms include skin rashes and dryness along with redness, itching, flaking, crusting, cracking, oozing and bleeding. Although not all these symptoms may occur when you have a episode of eczema, some or many of them may.

Eczema is also a term that is used to describe a variety of skin conditions that have these symptoms as well as being recurrent. If you ask you doctor or dermatologist, “what is eczema?” he/she will either be able to explain to you all you need to know or you may be shown photographs of eczema. Pictures of eczema often make the patient feel more confident, knowing they have a skin condition that affects many and will eventually go away.

Eczema can affect infants; in fact, the majority of the patients affected by eczema are babies. Sometimes parents of new borns that aren’t aware of what’s going on with their baby often become frightened, thinking something is dreadfully wrong with their little bundle of joy. Before an actual diagnosis of eczema is made, many parents typically mistake this condition for diaper rash or heat rash. Because of this, the eczema often becomes worse, causing the baby a lot of unnecessary discomfort. Eczema can become very itchy and it’s difficult in attempting to prevent young children and babies to not scratch and itch. If parents were better informed of the answer to the often-asked question, “what is eczema?” they could help their child much more quickly and with greater confidence.

Babies aren’t the only ones to suffer from eczema; it is common in children and teenagers. Teenagers can be quite discouraged and depressed when eczema occurs. Because pimples and acne are so common during the teen years, many teenagers as well as their parents mistake their eczema for teen acne. Only once they visit their doctor (usually because the eczema has worsened) do they discover that their condition is eczema. Whilst parents may through greater experience be aware eczema as a skin condition, but teenagers with their lack of life experience may  not and their first responses may be, “what is eczema?“

Getting appropriate treatment for eczema cannot occur until a correct diagnosis has been made. A doctor or dermatologist may prescribe a range of ointments, creams and possible antihistamines. Although not caused by allergies, eczema can also be triggered by allergens. Once your doctor starts treatment, your or your child’s eczema will be well on the way to becoming cured.

But remember, that whilst a doctor or dermatologist may recommend a course of treatment, patients often discover that their medication may change over time as a range of treatments may be necessary as they age.

In addition it may be possible that alternative approaches using natural treatments may actually be better at treating eczema, if conventional treatments appear not to work!

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