Eczema in adults

What is it?

Drying out of the skin can cause eczema. We see dyshidrotic eczema frequently and at all ages, but especially in the elderly. The skin is dry and tight and begins to crack. It often starts on the shins.

How to treat it

Eczema ointments can be prescribed as a treatment. However, tackling the cause is essential. Neutral nourishing creams should be applied daily, the number of times a person washes him or (herself should be limited and foaming soaps should not be used. It is advisable to use very greasy soaps or oils for washing. You can get light eczema ointments in the pharmacy without a prescription.

What is it?

Atopic eczema usually develops during childhood, but can start at any age. See here for more detailed information.

Treatment

Eczema ointments can be prescribed as a treatment, but tackling the cause is essential: to compensate for bad 'cement', grease must be applied. You do this by applying lots of nourishing creams.

What is it?

With seborrheic eczema or oily eczema, you have redness and yellow-white flakes. These occur in the hair, but also around and in the ears, at the hairline, in the folds next to the nose and/or between the eyebrows. This often occurs again and sometimes especially in case of stress. The flakes make the impacted sites feel dry.

How often does it occur?

Seborrhagic eczema or greasy eczema affects a quarter of men, but it is also seen in many women.

Cause

The cause is skin that produces a lot of sebum, either on the scalp or on the face. The sebum remains especially in the folds of the face. Yeasts overgrow and irritate the skin.

Treatment

As a treatment, we recommend avoiding oily creams. Light eczema ointments are often sufficient to get rid of it. However, the eczema can recur.

What is it?

In allergic contact eczema, your body reacts to something your skin comes into contact with. It could be nickel in your watch, a perfume substance in your shower gel or a preservative in your day cream. This is never congenital, but acquired through the use of products.

You can recognise it by an eczema that does not respond to treatment, keeps returning to the same areas or has blisters.

Treatment

It can be tested with patch tests or epicutaneous tests.