Dermatitis
Dermatitis is an inflammation skin reaction that ranges from mild to severe and can affect any person from birth to death. Various skin conditions, like eczema, fungal or bacterial infection may be described as “dermatitis”, however diagnosing the specific dermatitis is what enables appropriate treatment and healing.
What is Dermatitis
Dermatitis is a blanket term used to describe different skin disorders resulting in red, itchy, swollen, scabs, scales, and/or oozy blistering to the top epidermal skin layer. A mild form of dermatitis, such as dry skin from lack of moisture or a rash, can become infected and chronic if scratched. The skin may sting and bleed. There are specific types of “dermatitis” conditions that can evolve from cause to cause.
Types of Dermatitis
Certain types of dermatitis may be reactive from irritation or allergy, or may appear at specific stages of the life cycle, such as infancy, pregnancy, puberty, and menopause. The main types of dermatitis that fall under this umbrella term include:
- Contact dermatitis – from contact to the skin or through breathing
- Eczematous dermatitis (eczema) – genetic, or from foods and irritants
- Bullous disorders (blisters) – from friction, burning, freezing, chemicals or disease
- Atopic dermatitis – an inflammatory type of eczema or rash
- Dermatitis herpetiformis – from gastrointestinal conditions, like celiac disease
- Nummular dermatitis – an oval-shaped microbial eczema
- Perioral dermatitis – a mouth rash mainly affecting women
- Seborrheic dermatitis – yellow greasy scales usually affecting infants, men and AIDS sufferers
- Stasis dermatitis – inflamed lower legs from excess blood and fluid
- Pimples – from excess oil clogging the pores or hormones
- Dandruff – from increased cell renewal on the scalp
The types of skin types provided by no means covers all with causes known and unknown, but includes the most common types of dermatitis.
Causes of Dermatitis
Dermatitis is therefore caused by number of factors, such as:
- Genes
- Hormones
- Disease
- Skin contact, friction, or scratching
- Irritants
- Allergens
- Diets
- Chemicals
- Temperature
- Circulation or vascular disorders
- Sebaceous gland function
- Cell renewal
While one type of dermatitis may be caused by allergy or genes, another may result from friction, scratching or changes in temperature. The cause of the dermatitis is what usually dictates the type and symptoms.
Diagnosing Dermatitis
Dermatitis is usually diagnosed by what it looks like, the symptoms and sensations, the body parts affected, the severity, and the layer of skin affected, such as the outer epidermis. Each person, being unique and at alternate stages of the life cycle, may experience these symptoms differently making it hard to diagnose specific types of dermatitis. Useful diagnostic measures include:
- Seeing the patient over a period of time
- Detailing the patient’s medical history and medications (including psychological)
- Obtaining family history of skin conditions, allergies and diseases
- Noting what the patient has been exposed to, including new environments, new soaps and foods
- Testing through biopsy for skin reactions or over-sensitivity
Treatments for Dermatitis
Being able to identify the cause and type of dermatitis allows for designing an appropriate treatment plan. Part of the treatment plan may be avoidance of irritants or allergens through identifying internal and external factors, detailing what triggers the reaction, and not scratching or rubbing the skin. Treatments may fall into the following categories with examples provided:
- Natural – avoidance and wet compresses, and witch hazel
- Antibiotic - tetracycline
- Chemical injections - tincture of benzoin
- Antifungal shampoos or cleansers - pyrithione zinc
- Immune system regulating drugs - tacrolimus or pimecrolimus
- Topical medications - tacrolimus (Protopic) and pimecrolimus (Elidel)
- Steroidal - oral corticosteroids or corticosteroid creams, like hydrocortisone
- Phototherapy – exposure to ultraviolet light
- Dermatological Surgery
- Laser Treatment
Having a treatment plan and managing dermatitis is important because relapses can cause chronic dermatitis conditions that affects overall physical and mental health.