Alright, I have a never-ending battle with what I perceive to be some form of eczema on my upper arms.
I've been to my doctor, and he prescribed me some sort of cream that helped a bit, but really didn't make it go away. I have also tried creams of all kinds, and found that some help a bit, at least with the flareups, but the underlying problem is still there.
I'm wondering if something like tanning with help control it a lot more.
I haven't seen a dermatologist yet either....I'm planning on asking my doctor next time I see him.
Do you mean like little red bumps/marks on your upper arm? I have those as well, I just assumed it was a by-product of being extremely pasty-white.
Though, mine doesn't 'flare-up', nor does it rash, itch, peel, etc. It almost looks like they're pores that don't have hair growing out them or something. They've always been there, always the same... not sure if that's the same as what you're talking about.
Though I HAVE always thought it was 'Eczema'... I just never bothered to figure out what that is.
I've had ongoing problems with the same thing. Go see a dermatologist, its the best thing. Beware of doctors prescribing you a cortizone cream too many times. It can be effective but if used too often it can cause permanent damage to your skin because its a steroid.
I never really had any real success in dealing with it until I saw a dedicated dermatologist. They know what they're doing when it comes to this stuff.
__________________
A few weeks after crashing head-first into the boards (denting his helmet and being unable to move for a little while) following a hit from behind by Bob Errey, the Calgary Flames player explains:
"I was like Christ, lying on my back, with my arms outstretched, crucified"
-- Frank Musil - Early January 1994
Do you mean like little red bumps/marks on your upper arm? I have those as well, I just assumed it was a by-product of being extremely pasty-white.
Though, mine doesn't 'flare-up', nor does it rash, itch, peel, etc. It almost looks like they're pores that don't have hair growing out them or something. They've always been there, always the same... not sure if that's the same as what you're talking about.
Though I HAVE always thought it was 'Eczema'... I just never bothered to figure out what that is.
Fun stuff!
I think it's called keratosis pilaris. I have the same thing. Kind of like a really mild rash on the back of by upper arms. Had it my whole life, I've met quite a few people with the same thing. Doctors have told me it's common, and not to worry about it.
I've had ongoing problems with the same thing. Go see a dermatologist, its the best thing. Beware of doctors prescribing you a cortizone cream too many times. It can be effective but if used too often it can cause permanent damage to your skin because its a steroid.
I never really had any real success in dealing with it until I saw a dedicated dermatologist. They know what they're doing when it comes to this stuff.
What kind of damage does cortizone cream do?
I ask because I have been using it on my hands for years........but not everyday.
Go to a dermatologist as indicated above. I've fought eczema for a couple of years. I just went last month to a dermatologist who subscribed a cortico-steroid cream and within 3 weeks of applying as prescribed, it is more or less completely gone.
I don't know how much of it has to do with any curative properties of the cream or the not scratching factor, but the cream really helps with the itch (and when you do scratch you're constantly reminded not to because the stuff is extremely greasy). I've been off the cream for about a week and the skin, though still slightly rough in one of the areas, has completely healed and the itching is gone. I imagine it will continue to get better as I'm not scratching anymore.
I have been dealing with ezcema for 12ish years now. I have never been able to get rid of it completely ever, but its all about maintaining it.
The prescription creams you try should be .1% in cortisol steroid amounts (that is high). Whenever you have flair ups, then apply this, then a moisturizer such as eucerin or Vaseline ontop of it. Any areas that are repeat spots for it, always moisturize right away after showering and before bed. Use the steroid creams at the same time. I find that my body becomes used to each brand of cream once it has helped an inflamation, which leads me to constantly getting different brands of prescriptions in order to shake things up.
If you ever get anything that manages to puss and turn into sores, there is a high chance that it is infected and you need antibiotics. Since eczema skin is so thin and weak, it is very suseptable to infection. I just finished a week's prescription of Biaxon for this very reason, an area on the top side of my hand become infected and within 2 days of antibiotics the whole thing was cleared.
The basis of eczema is a mystery and differs hugely per person. I do not know what triggers mine, but possibilities are: unknowen food allergy, current nature related allergies, change in weather, or sweat. I just know that every day i moisturize areas that have ever broken out, and steriod cream any new areas both twice a day.
Sun is very good for your skin, even fake and bake if you need to. it will dry out inflamed areas and should help your body repair itself. And drink tons of water
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What kind of damage does cortizone cream do?
I ask because I have been using it on my hands for years........but not everyday.
It causes a bit of thinning of the skin...the skin starts to appear kind of shiney. I had this this happen a little bit on my upper elbows because of prolongued use of cortizone creams...of course I never realized it would happen until a dermatologist told me. It doesn't look really bad or anything, but you'd probably rather not have it. And at the end of the day, it didn't "cure" my skin conditions either.
There are other non-steroid based creams available that are effective and won't cause that kind of damage with longer term use.
__________________
A few weeks after crashing head-first into the boards (denting his helmet and being unable to move for a little while) following a hit from behind by Bob Errey, the Calgary Flames player explains:
"I was like Christ, lying on my back, with my arms outstretched, crucified"
-- Frank Musil - Early January 1994
Both of my kids have eczema, and their doctor has prescribed them each a different hydrocortisone cream...one is a .1% and the other is 1%...I've been told to only use it when their skin flares up because using it too often can make their skin thin. I've also been told to use a Glaxal Base cream as their everyday moisturizer, which I find it works really well for their skin.
The basis of eczema is a mystery and differs hugely per person. I do not know what triggers mine, but possibilities are: unknowen food allergy, current nature related allergies, change in weather, or sweat. I just know that every day i moisturize areas that have ever broken out, and steriod cream any new areas both twice a day.
Sun is very good for your skin, even fake and bake if you need to. it will dry out inflamed areas and should help your body repair itself. And drink tons of water
I find our hard water and lots of exposure to soaps, detergents and cleaning sprays triggers the eczema on my hands.......
I find keeping my skin moist helps more than anything and although I'm not sure if it helps eczema per se, I find aloe gel to be great for relieveing any general irritation on my skin.
You stop once you have "consistent" runny bowels. (Hello ladies!!!!) At first you would have them each time you increase the amount.
My skin cleared up. It did more for me than anything.
Then I got cocky... (can I say that?) stopped taking them and had fish in chips twice and a peters burger.... Oops. (I'm intolerant to wheat) and my skin broke out again. Not as bad though.
I think it's called keratosis pilaris. I have the same thing. Kind of like a really mild rash on the back of by upper arms. Had it my whole life, I've met quite a few people with the same thing. Doctors have told me it's common, and not to worry about it.
Yeah, that is what I have.
I'm not worried about it.....I do want to try and get rid of it though.
Go to a dermatologist as indicated above. I've fought eczema for a couple of years. I just went last month to a dermatologist who subscribed a cortico-steroid cream and within 3 weeks of applying as prescribed, it is more or less completely gone.
I don't know how much of it has to do with any curative properties of the cream or the not scratching factor, but the cream really helps with the itch (and when you do scratch you're constantly reminded not to because the stuff is extremely greasy). I've been off the cream for about a week and the skin, though still slightly rough in one of the areas, has completely healed and the itching is gone. I imagine it will continue to get better as I'm not scratching anymore.
This is exactly what you need. I use it whenever I have a flare up. Now I certainly do not use it on a daily basis, at this point, I use it maybe once a month. But when I was in Grade 8, the excema got so bad on my hands, my dermatologist had me use such a cream daily and wear white cotton gloves that either had to be discarded daily, or cleaned daily.
One thing about excema, no matter how bad it looks or feels, it can not be transmitted to someone else. There are a couple of types of excema, a dry rash and a wet weeping one. I suffer from the second.
As others have suggested, see a dermatologist. That is what I did when I could not get mine under control and he prescribed the cortico-steroid cream. But just use it sparingly and only until the itch is gone and the excema is under control. You might have to use it daily until you start to feel some relief, then go easy on the product. By the way, I have used such a cream for 40 some years and I have no problems with it or side effects whatsoever, but then, I do not abuse the product either.
Now there are other factors that affect me and certainly could affect others. For instance, I will get an outbreak of excema if I wear wool, or even any synthetc material that feels like wool. Sometimes it is the dye in the fabric that will affect me. I notice it pretty well immediately on my wrists, elbows, neck, any place where the fabric moves against the body.
I also have to really watch any cosmetic products that I use. So hand soaps, hand lotions, dish soaps, detergents for washing clothes, all those kinds of things I am extremely careful with. I never use fabric softener and put most of my clothes through a double rinse. From personal experience, I have found that the more heavily scented the product is, the more it irritates my excema. And for me, it is not related to diet, it is specifically what my skin comes in contact with.
Others have suggested other creams, I would not go that route. So many of those creams are scented with all kinds of other junk that could make your excema worse. If you have the dry type of excema, then use vaseline along with the cortico-steroid cream. Just before you go to bed, apply some vaseline to your hands or feet, put on light cotton gloves or socks and then go to sleep with them on. By morning, you should feel better. And by the way, if you get excema on your feet and can't stop scratching at night, then you should only wear cotton socks as well. Too many of the nylons, polys, wools etc all make excema worse. Usually by trial and error, you can eliminate most of the irritants that cause your excema.
EDIT: I forgot to add that I can not use down or feather products either. So that is another thing to keep in mind, what are your pillows or duvets stuffed with?
Last edited by redforever; 06-27-2009 at 09:00 AM.
I have had a few issues with eczema over the years. I tried everything and while the cortico-steroids work I was never finding long-term relief. Its a band-aid solution to the symptom, but not a cure for the cause (which I don't know what that is!).
Finally, I found that Emu Oil of all things seems to work. You can buy it at most health food stores, and you only need a few drops to cover your hands (which was where I had the eczema). I would recommend this to everyone with eczema....I have no idea what the science is behind this, or anything like that...it just worked for me.
One time my parents bought these stupid blankets from mexico. One night I fell asleep on the couch watching TV with these blankets on me. When my woke up in the morning, I had eczema reaction on my arms and elbows and it didn't go away again for a year.
I know that ocean/salt water got rid of some weird eczema on my finger a few years ago, but there's probably more successful or reliable ways to get rid of it
Eczema
