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Eczema is a skin disease that affects people of all ages, but for both genders the common cause is usually genetic. Where does eczema appear? Well, unfortunately, any part of the skin is exposed to the problem. You can recognize eczema by the following symptoms: dryness of skin, repeated rashes, redness of the skin, skin swelling/edema, itching, crusting, blistering, flaking, oozing, cracking and even bleeding. Besides these, occasionally, temporary skin discoloration might appear due to lesions that have already healed. However, scarring, in eczema is quite a rare consequence. From all the possible manifestations, hand eczema is pretty frequent. It affects 10% of women and 4% of men, according to Ronald Vender, MD, FRCCP. Apparently, hand eczema has been reported mainly by people who work as homemakers, bartenders, mechanics, hairdressers, surgeons or dental workers, as well as by parents. What do all these people have in common? Humidity favors hand eczema and all the above mentioned categories will wash their hands very often.

eczema hands

Approximately 75% of people who suffer from eczema are diagnosed with the type known as contact dermatitis. This can be allergic or irritant although the difference is hard to tell sometimes. Hand eczema differs in severity from individual to individual but it usually begins with mild dryness and a little redness. Initially it appears on fingers and between them with the possibility for the skin to become scaly and itchy. As it happens with the other types of eczema, in time, hand eczema may also lead to the appearance of cracking, swelling and blisters on the skin of the hand. If left untreated the condition will gradually spread to the skin of feet and arms.

eczema on hands

The most basic trigger of hand eczema is thefrequent washing and drying of the hands. Three situations favor the development of the problem: if you had previous episodes of atopic eczema, if you have a history of hay fever or asthma, and in case you have psoriasis. Fortunately there are a few things you can do to ease your hand eczema symptoms and get rid of the condition. Practical advice should always accompany the use of pharmaceutical products. Don’t hand wash dishes, in case you wear gloves, make sure to put a cotton pair under the rubber one so as to avoid the hand irritation because of detergents or synthetic glove material.

hand eczema