Does your skin look like a battlefield, with an itch that never lets up for a moment? Many dermatology patients with eczema would trade their suffering and neurodermatitis for almost any other illness.

We have all seen nappy advertisements: laughter, happy mothers and babies with velvety, healthy skin. Sadly, the idyll is not universal: between 5 and 10 per cent of children suffer from rough, dry, scaly skin. An almost unbearable itch torments them day and night and drives mothers and fathers close to despair. Eczema is a disease that makes life hard for children and their parents alike.

An English physician described eczema, also known as atopic dermatitis or endogenous eczema, more than 200 years ago. Relapses are common and turn into chronic dermatitis. The course and appearance of eczema can vary widely. Yet it always brings intense itching and reddish scaling; at times the eczema “weeps”, and it mostly develops in childhood.

Depending on the patient’s age, the skin disease favours particular parts of the body. In infants, eczema – also known as “cradle cap” – is usually confined to the scalp and face. With age it appears lower down, especially on the neck, arms and legs, preferably at the knees and elbows. In extreme cases, the skin lesions can spread across the whole body.

Many scientists have sought to uncover the causes of eczema, especially in recent decades. Today we know that the tendency to develop atopic dermatitis is hereditary.

Allergies such as hay fever or asthma also often occur. The immune system of people with eczema reacts with heightened sensitivity to stimuli that are entirely harmless to healthy people. It mounts a disproportionate defence that damages the skin.

Mites, animal dander, food

The range of triggers is as colourful and varied as a spring bouquet: pollen, dust mites, animal dander (especially cat fur), food (often eggs and cow’s milk) and environmental toxins. All of these can trigger, worsen or sustain neurodermatitis. The psyche has a significant influence on the severity of eczema. Tension, stress and emotional conflicts are often reflected in the skin.

Neurodermatitis in adults often shapes personality. People become vulnerable and may neglect their own wishes and needs. When they struggle to cope with a stressful situation, the affected skin of people with neurodermatitis can literally crack and “burst”.

Is there a cure-all?

Many factors contribute to eczema, and no single treatment suits everyone with neurodermatitis. It takes a great deal of time and tact to find out what helps and what does not.

  • Which foods harm the skin?
  • Does the person react to wool, detergents or other products?
  • Is there a cat or another pet at home?

Generally, moisturising ointments and lotions are popular for weeping eczema. Dry, flaky skin needs rich, oily preparations. Frequent washing, soap and fat-free bath products dry out the skin. Many patients find relief when sunbathing or with a change of climate, taking mud and salt baths. Moving to a lakeside or mountain location may be helpful.

Complementary medicine has also developed a wide range of treatments, such as bioresonance therapy, traditional Chinese medicine, tea tree oil and many other methods – as well as cortisone, which quickly relieves the tormenting itch and stops skin inflammation.

Even so, cortisone offers no lasting solution. Because of its pronounced side effects throughout the body, it is used only as a short-term treatment under medical supervision.

Preventive measures cannot cure eczema, but they can keep the course of the disease to a minimum. The fear of infection with bacteria and viruses in eczema is also exaggerated. Children with eczema are significantly less likely to develop skin lesions when they live full lives, play freely and have early and frequent contact with pathogens, which evidently strengthens their immune system more quickly.

Relaxation therapies can help

Coping with a chronic illness is hard for everyone involved. Parents must watch helplessly as their child suffers. Those affected are themselves mentally and physically exhausted after years of fighting for their health. Unbearable itching, bloody scratches and sleepless nights can push anyone to the limit. Other people’s negative reactions to the visible signs of skin disease often add to the suffering and increase the psychological pressure. Stress and tension in turn weaken the body’s defences, and a vicious circle develops.

Joy, emotional balance and relaxation, on the other hand, strengthen the immune system. Relaxation therapies such as autogenic training and yoga are therefore a valuable aid during treatment or in remission.

A person with atopic dermatitis has to accept that they cannot change the situation or the patches of irritated skin. On the whole, eczema recedes: in 65 per cent of affected children the disease subsides by the age of ten. In other cases, flare-ups generally become rarer and milder with age.