Heavy
bacterial colonization is common in all types of eczema but overt infection is
most troublesome in the seborrhoeic, nummular and atopic types. Local
sup-erimposed allergic reactions to medicaments can pro-voke dissemination,
especially in gravitational eczema.
All
severe forms of eczema have a huge effect on the quality of life. An itchy
sleepless child can wreck family life. Eczema can interfere with work, sporting
activities and sex lives. Jobs can be lost through it.
This falls into two halves. First, eczema has to be separated from other skin conditions that look like it. Table 7.2 plots a way through this maze. Always remember that eczemas are scaly, with poorly defined margins.
Occasionally
a biopsy is helpful in confirming a diagnosis of eczema, but it will not
determine the cause or type. Once the diagnosis of eczema becomes solid, look
for clinical pointers towards an external cause. This determines both the need
for investiga-tions and the best line of treatment. Sometimes an eruption will
follow one of the well-known patterns of eczema, such as the way atopic eczema
picks out the skin behind the knees, and a diagnosis can then be made readily
enough. Often, however, this is not the case, and the history then becomes
especially important.
A
contact element is likely if:
•
there is obvious contact with known
irritants or allergens;
•
the eruption clears when the patient
goes on holiday, or at the weekends;
•
the eczema is asymmetrical, or has a
linear or recti-linear configuration; or
•
the rash picks out the eyelids,
external ear canals, hands and feet, the skin around stasis ulcers, or the
peri-anal skin.
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