WHAT IS ATOPIC DERMATITIS/ECZEMA?
Atopic Dermatitis is an inflammatory, non-contagious and itchy skin disorder.
SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS:
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The skin of a patient with atopic dermatitis reacts abnormally and easily to irritants, food, and environmental allergens and becomes red, flaky and very itchy. Although atopic dermatitis can theoretically affect any part of the body, it tends to be more frequent on the hands, feet, chest, face, and neck. Atopic dermatitis can also affect the skin around the eyes including the eyelids.
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Atopic dermatitis often occurs together with other atopic diseases like hay fever, asthma, and allergic conjunctivitis.
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Although there is no cure for atopic dermatitis and its cause is not well understood, it can be treated very effectively in the short term through a combination of prevention (learning what triggers the allergic reactions) and drug therapy.
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Atopic dermatitis most often begins in childhood before age 5 and may persist in adulthood. For some, it flares periodically and then subsides for a time, even up to several years.