Everything you need to know about eczema
Photo: Stocksy United
When Amanda Cresswell-Melville?s son, Nathan, was about three months old, his skin began periodically breaking out in red, angry-looking patches that were obviously itchy and uncomfortable. ?We could tell he was miserable?he was cranky, he would cry, and he would try to scratch and rub his skin,? recalls the Toronto-area mother of two. ?At his worst, we would find blood on his sheets; we would find him in his car seat having scratched his face until it was bleeding.?
Eczema (also known as atopic dermatitis) affects an estimated 10 to 20 percent of Canadian kids, and while the symptoms aren?t always as severe as Nathan?s, they are chronic and can be long-lasting. To diagnose it, doctors look for one or more clues, like a red, scaly rash that may be crusty or weepy; itchiness (even where there isn?t a rash); dry skin; and skin that?s easily irritated, says Miriam Weinstein, a paediatric dermatologist at Toronto?s Hospital for Sick Children. In babies, it often appears on the forehead, cheeks and scalp; in toddlers, it crops up most commonly in body folds, like the crook of the elbow. That said, ?the rash can be anywhere you have skin,? Weinstein says.
Who gets it
If you have hay fever, asthma or allergies in the family, there?s a stronger chance your kid will have eczema, but kids with no family history of allergies can develop it, too. It commonly shows up before age two. ?The good news is that about 60 to 70 percent of kids will grow out of eczema by ...
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