Your Doctor Says It's Eczema, What Is Eczema?
So you finally saw the doctor about that irritating itchy rash that has been driving you crazy. The doctor has made a diagnosis of eczema. Ok, so what is eczema?
Eczema is just exactly what you are noticing on your skin. In other words, it is an itchy inflamed rash on your skin. It generally is first noticed in early childhood before the age of five.
Eczema is estimated to affect about ten to fifteen percent of the population. Recently it has become more common and doctors are not sure of the reason. There is no real test for eczema diagnosis, but most doctors are very familiar with it and can easily diagnose eczema when they observe it in a patient. It will generally be noticed in the first six months of life. Throughout the sufferers life they will experience bouts of outbreaks with sometimes very long periods of time without any symptoms at all.
This skin condition is not very well understood by the medical community. They are still asking the question, what is eczema? This is because there has been no determination of the cause or even an effective treatment that will work in most cases. Eczema is a very stubborn condition and a variety of treatments will be necessary for a patient to find relief.
Eczema can cause a host of other problems for the patient. For instance, the constant scratching can cause scarring and a thickening of the skin. The psychological effects of eczema can be the most devastating. Many people find that they are embarrassed over their skin condition and will try to cover up their eczema outbreaks with clothing. It can also cause sleep deprivation because the patient is frequently awakened in the night with severe itching. For those who have eczema rashes on their hands it can have a significant impact on their daily functioning. It can be painful to do common household chores without the use of gloves to protect the skin from coming into contact with cleansers and certain surfaces.
Now that your doctor has officially diagnosed you with eczema take the time to ask the questions you have about your condition. Feel free to ask what treatments the doctor might prescribe for you and how effective these treatments are for others with the same condition. And of course, don't forget to ask your most important question. What is eczema? You will find that the doctor can answer this question of what it is, but the medial community still has no idea what causes it.
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