Atopic dermatitis Stories

DEFINITION

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Also called eczema, atopic dermatitis is a common condition that causes itchy, dry, and inflamed skin. It usually begins in childhood but can start at any age. Atopic dermatitis is not contagious, so this condition cannot spread from person to person.

 

Eczema refers to a group of conditions that cause rashes, itchiness, and excessively dry skin. Atopic dermatitis is one type of eczema.

There are several causes of eczema. Skin can react to a substance, such as poison ivy or nickel, leading to an allergic skin reaction. This type of eczema is called contact dermatitis. Another type of eczema causes long-term swelling of the skin and is called stasis dermatitis. Atopic dermatitis is the most common type of eczema.

 

Atopic dermatitis is a chronic disease, which means it can last a long time. For many children, the condition goes away by their teenage years. However, some people have the condition for life.

 

 

SYMPTOMS

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Babies often develop atopic dermatitis on their face.

If your baby has a lighter skin tone, you may see a pink or red rash with bumps and swollen skin that may ooze or crust. Babies with darker skin tones are more likely to develop small bumps, extremely dry skin, and dark brown, gray, or purple skin where they have atopic dermatitis.

 

Once atopic dermatitis begins, you may notice one or more of the following:

• Itchy skin

• Dry, scaly areas

• Red rash (especially on lighter skin tones)

• Small, rough bumps (more common in darker skin tones)

• Dark brown, purple, or grayish areas of skin (darker skin tones)

• Skin feels warm and maybe swollen (inflammation)

• Scratch marks

• Raw skin from scratching

• Bumps or rashes leaking fluid

• Blisters that ooze and crust over

• After healing, skin may be lighter or darker where you had atopic dermatitis

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Flare-ups can come and go for years. While the skin is healing in one area, flare-ups may occur in other areas. The flare-ups can also occur in the same place again and again.

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Over time, atopic dermatitis can cause the skin to become:

• Thickened, scaly, and leathery

• Cracked

 

The dry, cracked skin and scratching make the skin more susceptible to infection. Infections that people with atopic dermatitis can develop include:

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-Staph infection: Yellow or golden crusts on the skin often indicate a staph infection.

-Molluscum contagiosum: Having atopic dermatitis increases the risk of getting this common viral infection, which causes small bumps on the skin. If you have atopic dermatitis, dermatologists often recommend treating molluscum, especially if it triggers a flare-up of atopic dermatitis.

-Eczema herpeticum: This is a serious infection caused by the herpes simplex virus. Symptoms include dome-shaped blisters and bumps, along with fever, fatigue, and swollen lymph nodes. In children, babies, and anyone who is immunocompromised, eczema herpeticum can be life-threatening and requires immediate medical care.

 

Many studies find that having atopic dermatitis can cause people to feel anxious, depressed, or both. This is often due to the itch, pain, and problems sleeping. These feelings can also be triggered by flare-ups. Some people say they feel ashamed when others see flare-ups on their skin.

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When people feel anxious or depressed, they often spend more time alone. This can cause people to feel isolated.

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TYPICAL PRESENTATION

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Where atopic dermatitis develops on the body tends to vary with age. The signs can also differ with race. 

 

-While atopic dermatitis can appear anywhere, babies and young children often develop it on their cheeks, forehead, or scalp. Flare-ups can later also appear on the trunk, legs, or arms. On lighter skin tones, you often see a red rash with bumps. Children with darker skin tones may have several bumps with or without redness and darker areas of skin, like on this boy’s forehead.

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Atopic dermatitis is intensely itchy. When babies have itchy skin, they rub against something. The rubbing can cause bumps, which can ooze and then crust over.

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You may see dry, scaly skin on any area of your baby’s body. If your baby often rubs up against objects to relieve the itch of the dry, scaly skin, your baby may develop raw skin.

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The discomfort caused by the itch, rash, and dry skin can cause your baby to act fussy or have trouble sleeping. Lack of sleep is common in anyone who has atopic dermatitis, including babies and young children.

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-Between 2 years of age and puberty, itchy, scaly patches appear on the elbows, knees, or ankles. 

 

Children with lighter skin tones often develop an itchy rash in the creases of their elbows or backs of their knees. If your child has a darker skin tone, patches tend to form on the fronts of the knees, elbows, and backs of their hands. Other common places for atopic dermatitis to appear are the neck, wrists, and ankles. Children with brown or black skin are more likely than white children to have atopic dermatitis on their trunk.

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These creases, which are called Dennie-Morgan folds, also develop in people who have asthma or hay fever.

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-Older children and teenagers may have small, itchy bumps on their skin instead of a weepy rash. Scratching can cause the spots to leak fluid and then crust over. On darker skin tones, the bumps tend to be gray to violet-brown in color.

 

Skin that is constantly rubbed or scratched can thicken. This helps protect the skin. Thickened skin is often excessively dry and itches most of the time.

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-In adults, atopic dermatitis can take many forms. For some people, the condition looks the same as when they were a child or teenager.

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Adults are more likely than children to have atopic dermatitis on their hands. In fact, the hands may be the only place adults have the condition.

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Adults are more likely than children to have atopic dermatitis around their eyes. You’ll often see thickened skin that’s darker than the surrounding skin.

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If you’ve had atopic dermatitis for years, patches of your skin may have permanently thickened and developed a leathery texture, as shown here. This is caused by years of scratching. The affected skin also tends to look darker (or lighter) than the surrounding skin. The thickened skin can itch all the time, even when you don’t have a flare-up.

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Adults may develop discolored skin that’s extremely dry and easily irritated. This often develops on the hands or feet, but it can occur anywhere. Some adults have nipple eczema, which can be itchy and painful.

 

Text from the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD).

 

Source: https://www.aad.org/public/diseases/eczema/types/atopic-dermatitis