Eczema: Symptoms, Diagnosis, Prognosis, & Treatment

Eczema is also known as dermatitis or contact dermatitis. Some doctors refer to it as "vesicular dermatitis". Regardless of what you call it, patents recognize it as a rash like skin problem that can be painful, itch, burn, sting, or just feel like bumpy dry skin. Most all patients agree it is embarrassing, which can be a greater concern than the physical symptoms.

Symptoms of Eczema can range from transient redness to extensive swelling with bullae (clear fluid filled, thin walled, blisters measuring 3/16^th of an inch wide or more), pruritus (itching), and vesiculation (blistering). The blisters may rupture, ooze, and crust over. With time the area of inflammation subsides and becomes dry and flakey. Lichenification (thickening of the skin) caused by scratching the area may also take place.

Most physicians readily diagnose eczema. Eczema is generally considered a type 4 delayed hypersensitivity condition. This basically means that eczema is produced by an allergen or a chemical sensitivity. Occasionally photo-allergic (light / sun) sensitivities are found and are likely to have a co-cause like suntan lotion or chlorine. Patch testing using contact allergens (substances that produce an allergic reaction) can help determine the cause of flare ups and confirm a diagnosis. Patient history and knowing the site of the original blistering or redness is an important clue as to possible cause / sensitivity.

The mechanism behind the reaction or symptoms can be very involved requiring a substantial understanding cell and molecular biology and immunology. A layman's explanation in very simplistic terms; is your body reacts to a substance leading to the symptoms as previously described. Eczema is the bodies exaggerated response to a substance. Eczema suffers tend to react to substances that do not cause a reaction in the majority of people. The actual mechanism for the reaction though is based on our bodies self defense abilities, the immune system and the fascinating communication network within and between our cells. What many people fail to understand is it is not the substance that causes the changes / symptoms but the bodies reaction to the substance. An example to clarify this concept might be the use of sandpaper on the skin. If you "sand" the skin the sand paper is damaging the skin, but if you just touch the sand paper to the skin and your body views it as a danger and starts to attack it with an immune system response, than the body is creating the damage. It is important for you to understand this difference for you to understand the reasoning behind the answers to / resolution to eczema. Medical doctors are limited to prescribing medication that only short circuit your immune response for a short time and offer no answers for a long term solution, however there are long term solutions that modulate your immune response (normalize it). Normalizing your immune response is the answer to eczema - keep reading!

The prognosis for suffers of eczema vary from person to person without predictability. Some will eventually "out grow it" others will see it worsen as they age. The majority find that it will remain a life long problem for them. Identifying and avoiding offending substances reduces flare-ups. However, if the immune response can be normalized even with contact of offending substances symptoms rarely reappear.

Treatment options given by medical doctors are limited to trying to short circuit the immune response. This at best gives only temporary relief of symptoms, and never addresses a long term or permanent solution. These treatments consist of prescriptions for prednisone, topical cream corticosteroids, and antihistamines. None of these are overly helpful during the blistering phase. Fortunately research studies, forward looking medical doctors, and naturopathic physicians have found answers for both short term relief and long term freedom from symptoms that may prove to be a cure. Answers-to.com provides an easy down load with the latest research findings, and the best non-traditional approaches to overcoming eczema. There is relief from the misery and embarrassment of eczema. Individual reports indicate greater short term relief with a safe and natural herbal salve than was afforded with more expensive less safe prescriptions. Long term successes have been documented through peer review studies published in many medical journals. Medical doctors continue to ignore these new, safe, and effective protocols in favor of their traditional less effective prescriptions.

Research is continuing to show effective, safe, natural, and inexpensive treatments and answers-to: eczema. Unfortunately most research regardless of it success and potential benefits to patients takes 15 to 20 years before doctors routinely treat or inform patients about it. This lag time has many reasons, arrogance, economic, laziness, indifference, uninformed, disbelief, self-protection, conformity bias, and rarely regulation. Taking responsibility for your own health care and becoming educated about treatment options conventional and non-conventional as well as current research successes is imperative. Some people resign themselves to a life of suffering; others attack the problem, read, try things that others report have helped like herbs, emperors best kombucha tea, nutritional approaches, etc..... Good luck and God Bless!