INFANTILE ECZEMA – INTRODUCTION
Infantile eczema or atopic dermatitis may produce a rash on the limbs, the trunk, the nappy area and even the face.
It may be dry and red or weeping and crusting.
This skin condition is one of the atopic diseases which have a strong family history, and include asthma, hayfever, sometimes migraine and, of course, eczema.
In some families there may be little evidence of the disorder but in others most or all of the members suffer from one or more of these disorders.
The role of allergy in atopic dermatitis in infants is difficult to evaluate. Some may be allergic to cow’s milk, or to other foods, but this is unusual.
What is definite is that breast-feeding tends to delay the development of eczema, and the outbreak is usually not as severe.
Rubbing and scratching may break the skin and lead to secondary infection. Repeated scratching in children and also in adults may lead the skin to become thick and dry and this increases the itch, so a vicious cycle becomes established.
Due to a disturbance in the immune system of the body associated with this disorder, general infection and infection of the skin is common.
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