Dermatitis
The exact cause of the condition is often unclear.[2] Cases may involve a combination of allergy and poor venous return.[1] The type of dermatitis is generally determined by the person's history and the location of the rash.[1] For example, irritant dermatitis often occurs on the hands of those who frequently get them wet.[1] Allergic contact dermatitis occurs upon exposure to an allergen, causing a hypersensitivity reaction in the skin.[1]
dermatitis
Prevention of atopic dermatitis is typically with essential fatty acids,[4] and may be treated with moisturizers and steroid creams.[5] The steroid creams should generally be of mid- to high strength and used for less than two weeks at a time, as side effects can occur.[7] Antibiotics may be required if there are signs of skin infection.[2] Contact dermatitis is typically treated by avoiding the allergen or irritant.[8][9] Antihistamines may help with sleep and decrease nighttime scratching.[2]
Many authors use the terms dermatitis and eczema synonymously,[1] and various dictionaries that treat the terms as differentiable nonetheless do not provide explicit criteria for differentiating them, as the aspects of inflammation, pruritus, and either exogenous or endogenous provoking agent all can apply to either term, and thus autoimmune components are not excluded from either.
Others use the term eczema to specifically mean atopic dermatitis.[13][14][15] Atopic dermatitis is also known as atopic eczema.[5] In some languages, dermatitis and eczema mean the same thing, while in other languages dermatitis implies an acute condition and eczema a chronic one.[16]
There are several types of dermatitis including atopic dermatitis, contact dermatitis, stasis dermatitis and seborrhoeic dermatitis.[2] Dermatitis symptoms vary with all different forms of the condition. Although every type of dermatitis has different symptoms, there are certain signs that are common for all of them, including redness of the skin, swelling, itching and skin lesions with sometimes oozing and scarring. Also, the area of the skin on which the symptoms appear tends to be different with every type of dermatitis, whether on the neck, wrist, forearm, thigh or ankle. Although the location may vary, the primary symptom of this condition is itchy skin. More rarely, it may appear on the genital area, such as the vulva or scrotum.[17][18] Symptoms of this type of dermatitis may be very intense and may come and go. Irritant contact dermatitis is usually more painful than itchy.
Although the symptoms of atopic dermatitis vary from person to person, the most common symptoms are dry, itchy, red skin. Typical affected skin areas include the folds of the arms, the back of the knees, wrists, face and hands. Perioral dermatitis refers to a red bumpy rash around the mouth.[19]
Dermatitis herpetiformis symptoms include itching, stinging and a burning sensation. Papules and vesicles are commonly present.[20] The small red bumps experienced in this type of dermatitis are usually about 1 cm in size, red in color and may be found symmetrically grouped or distributed on the upper or lower back, buttocks, elbows, knees, neck, shoulders and scalp.
The symptoms of seborrhoeic dermatitis, on the other hand, tend to appear gradually, from dry or greasy scaling of the scalp (dandruff) to scaling of facial areas, sometimes with itching, but without hair loss.[21] In newborns, the condition causes a thick and yellowish scalp rash, often accompanied by a diaper rash. In severe cases, symptoms may appear along the hairline, behind the ears, on the eyebrows, on the bridge of the nose, around the nose, on the chest, and on the upper back.[22]
People with eczema should not receive the smallpox vaccination due to risk of developing eczema vaccinatum, a potentially severe and sometimes fatal complication.[23]Other major health risks for people with dermatitis are viral and bacterial infections because atopic dermatitis patients have deficiencies in their proteins and lipids that have barrier functions along with defects in dendritic cells and as a result are unable to keep foreign invaders out leading to recurring infections.[24] If left untreated, these infections may be life-threatening, so skin barrier improvement (such as daily moisturizing to minimize transepidermal water loss) and anti-inflammatory therapy are recommended as preventative measures.[24]
In the 1950s Arild Hansen showed that in humans: infants fed skimmed milk developed the essential fatty acid deficiency. It was characterized by an increased food intake, poor growth, and a scaly dermatitis, and was cured by the administration of corn oil.
There is no known cure for some types of dermatitis, with treatment aiming to control symptoms by reducing inflammation and relieving itching. Contact dermatitis is treated by avoiding what is causing it.
Bathing once or more a day is recommended, usually for five to ten minutes in warm water.[5][41] Soaps should be avoided, as they tend to strip the skin of natural oils and lead to excessive dryness.[42] The American Academy of Dermatology suggests using a controlled amount of bleach diluted in a bath to help with atopic dermatitis.[43]
Some moisturizers or barrier creams may reduce irritation in occupational irritant hand dermatitis,[48] a skin disease that can affect people in jobs that regularly come into contact with water, detergents, chemicals or other irritants.[48] Some emollients may reduce the number of flares in people with dermatitis.[46]
There is little evidence supporting the use of antihistamine medications for the relief of dermatitis.[5][52] Sedative antihistamines, such as diphenhydramine, may be useful in those who are unable to sleep due to eczema.[5] Second generation antihistamines have minimal evidence of benefit.[53] Of the second generation antihistamines studied, fexofenadine is the only one to show evidence of improvement in itching with minimal side effects.[53]
In September 2021, ruxolitinib cream (Opzelura) was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the topical treatment of mild to moderate atopic dermatitis.[61] It is a topical Janus kinase inhibitor.[61]
Light therapy using heliotherapy, balneophototherapy, psoralen plus UVA (PUVA), light has tentative support but the quality of the evidence is not very good compared with narrowband UVB, and UVA1.[64] However, UVB is more effective than UVA1 for treatment of atopical dermatitis.[65]
Chiropractic spinal manipulation lacks evidence to support its use for dermatitis.[68] There is little evidence supporting the use of psychological treatments.[69] While dilute bleach baths have been used for infected dermatitis there is little evidence for this practice.[70]
Diagnosis of eczema is based mostly on the history and physical examination.[5] In uncertain cases, skin biopsy may be taken for a histopathologic diagnosis of dermatitis.[78] Those with eczema may be especially prone to misdiagnosis of food allergies.[79]
A type of dermatitis may be described by location (e.g., hand eczema), by specific appearance (eczema craquele or discoid) or by possible cause (varicose eczema). Further adding to the confusion, many sources use the term eczema interchangeably for the most common type: atopic dermatitis.[26]
Atopic dermatitis is an allergic disease believed to have a hereditary component and often runs in families whose members have asthma. Itchy rash is particularly noticeable on the head and scalp, neck, inside of elbows, behind knees, and buttocks. It is very common in developed countries and rising. Irritant contact dermatitis is sometimes misdiagnosed as atopic dermatitis. Stress can cause atopic dermatitis to worsen.[85]
Contact dermatitis is of two types: allergic (resulting from a delayed reaction to an allergen, such as poison ivy, nickel, or Balsam of Peru),[86] and irritant (resulting from direct reaction to a detergent, such as sodium lauryl sulfate, for example).
Some substances act both as allergen and irritants (wet cement, for example). Other substances cause a problem after sunlight exposure, bringing on phototoxic dermatitis. About three-quarters of cases of contact eczema are of the irritant type, which is the most common occupational skin disease. Contact eczema is curable, provided the offending substance can be avoided and its traces removed from one's environment. (ICD-10 L23; L24; L56.1; L56.0)
Seborrhoeic dermatitis or seborrheic dermatitis is a condition sometimes classified as a form of eczema that is closely related to dandruff. It causes dry or greasy peeling of the scalp, eyebrows, and face, and sometimes trunk. In newborns, it causes a thick, yellow, crusty scalp rash called cradle cap, which seems related to lack of biotin and is often curable. (ICD-10 L21; L21.0)
Dyshidrosis (dyshidrotic eczema, pompholyx, vesicular palmoplantar dermatitis) only occurs on palms, soles, and sides of fingers and toes. Tiny opaque bumps called vesicles, thickening, and cracks are accompanied by itching, which gets worse at night. A common type of hand eczema, it worsens in warm weather. (ICD-10 L30.1)
Venous eczema (gravitational eczema, stasis dermatitis, varicose eczema) occurs in people with impaired circulation, varicose veins, and edema, and is particularly common in the ankle area of people over 50. There is redness, scaling, darkening of the skin, and itching. The disorder predisposes to leg ulcers. (ICD-10 I83.1)
Neurodermatitis (lichen simplex chronicus, localized scratch dermatitis) is an itchy area of thickened, pigmented eczema patch that results from habitual rubbing and scratching. Usually, there is only one spot. Often curable through behaviour modification and anti-inflammatory medication. Prurigo nodularis is a related disorder showing multiple lumps. (ICD-10 L28.0; L28.1)
Dermatitis affected about 10% of U.S. workers in 2010, representing over 15 million workers with dermatitis. Prevalence rates were higher among females than among males and among those with some college education or a college degree compared to those with a high school diploma or less. Workers employed in healthcare and social assistance industries and life, physical, and social science occupations had the highest rates of reported dermatitis. About 6% of dermatitis cases among U.S. workers were attributed to work by a healthcare professional, indicating that the prevalence rate of work-related dermatitis among workers was at least 0.6%.[91] 041b061a72