CLASSICAL ALLERGIC DISEASES: ATOPIC ECZEMA
Eczema is a term that is often used rather loosely for a variety of skin conditions. Strictly speaking it means a red, itchy ‘rash’, which tends to flake and then ooze or ‘weep’ as it progresses. The disease is far more common in children, who usually compound the damage by constant scratching. Bacteria may infect the oozing skin and matce matters still worse, while prolonged scratching will cause bleeding.
In adults, oozing does not generally occur, and the skin tends to become thickened instead. Some doctors feel that these symptoms should not be described as eczema, although they are undoubtedly the counterpart of childhood eczema. They therefore use the term atopic dermatitis as a general description of both types of disease. In this book we will use eczema for both children and adults, since this is the most widely understood term.
There are several different kinds of eczema, but what concerns us here is the variety known as atopic eczema, which is seen mainly in atopic individuals. What distinguishes it from other forms of eczema is the pattern of distribution over the body. The red itchy patches usually start on the face, particularly on convex areas such as the cheeks and chin. In time the skin on the face heals and for some children this will be the end of their eczema. But for others the rash appears on the body, eventually settling in the folds of skin at the buttocks, knees, ankles, elbows and wrists. In severely affected cases, the rash may cover the whole body.
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