See also:

• ECZEMA (Gr. EKE a, a cutaneous eruption)

ECZEMA (Gr. EKE a, a cutaneous eruption)  , one of the most See also:

• COMMON

common and important of all skin diseases, consisting of a catarrhal inflammation of the skin originating without visible See also:

• EXTERNAL

external irritation, and characterized in some See also:

• STAGE (Fr. 6/age; from Lat. stare, to stand)

stage of its See also:

• EVOLUTION

evolution by a serous exudation . This See also:

• DEFINITION (Lat. definitio, from de-finire, to set limits to, describe)

definition excludes all those forms of inflammation of the skin (dermatitis), which though they may be identical in course and manifestation are yet caused by chemical or See also:

• MECHANICAL

mechanical irritants . For an attack of See also:

• ECZEMA (Gr. EKE a, a cutaneous eruption)

eczema two conditions are necessary: a predisposition or See also:

• SPECIAL

special irritability of the skin, and a directly exciting cause . The first of these conditions is usually inherited or depends on some underlying constitutional See also:

• STATE
• STATE, GREAT OFFICERS OF

state . Thus any organic See also:

• LESION (through Fr. from Lat. laesio, injury, laedere, to hurt)

lesion which may produce oedema and malnutrition of the cutis and epidermis as in See also:

• KIDNEY

kidney diseases, any See also:

• CONDITION (Lat. condicio, from condicere, to agree upon, arrange; not connected with conditio, from condere, conditum, to put together)

condition of imperfect See also:

• METABOLISM (from Gr. ,uera(3oXh, change)

metabolism as in See also:

• DYSPEPSIA (from the Gr. prefix Sur-, hard, ill, and 'irirreiv, to digest)

dyspepsia or malnutrition, or See also:

• SEBORRHOEA

seborrhoea, may be the predisposing cause . Another See also:

• INFLUENCE (Late Lat. influentia, from influere, to flow in)

influence that has received increasing See also:

• ATTENTION (from Lat. ad-tendo, await, expect; the condition of being " stretched " or " tense ")

attention from skin specialists is that of any See also:

• NERVOUS

nervous See also:

• SHOCK, or COLLAPSE

shock or prolonged See also:

• MENTAL

mental See also:

• STRAIN (through O. Fr. straindre, estraindre, mod. i treindre, from Lat. stringere, to draw tight, related to stress, stretch, string, &c.)

strain . A " chill " is followed in most See also:

• PEOPLE

people by an See also:

• ORDINARY (med. Lat. ordinarius, Fr. ordinaire)

ordinary See also:

• COLD (in O. Eng. cald and ceald, a word coming ultimately from a root cognate with the Lat. gelu, gelidus, and common in the Teutonic languages, which usually have two distinct forms for the substantive and the adjective, cf. Ger. Kolte, kalt, Dutch koude

cold, but in some by an attack of eczema . Again, it may be caused by reflex nervous irritation from the uterus, See also:

• STOMACH (Gr. vrbsaxos from arbga, a mouth)

stomach, &c . In some See also:

• WOMEN

women it always accompanies menstruation, and in others pregnancy . It is of common occurrence in See also:

• INFANCY

infancy, being attributed by some specialists to dentition, but by others to seborrhoea . Also there is an undoubted relationship between eczema and certain forms of functional neurosis, 0f which perhaps See also:

• ASTHMA (Gr. avBµa, gasping, whence lio-Ogaivw, I gasp for breath)

asthma is the most striking See also:

• ILLUSTRATION

illustration, some physicians considering the latter trouble to be eczema of the bronchial tubes . Sufferers from See also:

• RHEUMATISM (from Gr. /56µa, flux)

rheumatism and See also:

• GOUT

gout are also specially prone to eczema, though the exact relationship is a much disputed point .

There are yet other cases that are undoubtedly microbic, but the micro-organism cannot produce the lesion unless the See also:

• SOIL

soil is suitable . As a See also:

• RULE

rule it is See also:

• NET

net contagious, though when complicated by micro-organisms it may be auto-inoculable, or more rarely inoculable from one patient to another . Except between the ages of ten and twenty years when menstruation is becoming established, and again at the menopause, See also:

• MALES

males are more liable to be attacked than See also:

• FEMALES

females . In old See also:

• AGE (Fr. age, through late Lat. aetaticum, from aetas)

age the See also:

• SEX (Lat. sexes; possibly connected with secure, to cut)

sex influence is lost . An attack of eczema is usually described as acute or chronic, but the only distinction lies in the greater or less intensity of the inflammation at the See also:

• TIME (0. Eng. Lima, cf. Icel. timi, Swed. timme, hour, Dan. time; from the root also seen in " tide," properly the time of between the flow and ebb of the sea, cf. O. Eng. getidan, to happen, " even-tide," &c.; it is not directly related to Lat. tempus)
• TIME, MEASUREMENT OF
• TIME, STANDARD

time of description: it has nothing to do with the length of time that the disease has lasted . The illness usually begins with a feeling of itching and burning at the site of the lesion . The skin becomes covered with an erythematous blush, on which numerous tiny vesicles See also:

• FORM (Lat. forma)

form . Swelling, See also:

• HEAT (0. E. haktu, which like " hot," Old Eng. hat, is from the Teutonic type haita, hit, to be hot; cf. Ger. hitze, heiss; Dutch, hitte, heet, &c.)

heat, redness and tension are all See also:

• PRESENT

present . The vesicles grow larger, run together, and either burst or are broken by the patient's scratching, a clear fluid exuding which stiffens See also:

• LINEN

linen . The See also:

• DISCHARGE (adapted from the O. Fr. discharge, modern decharge, from a med. Lat. discargare, to unload, dis- and earn care, to load, cf. " charge ")

discharge does not dry up at once, but continues to exude—hence the name of " weeping eczema " when this is a prominent symptom . In mild cases the symptoms begin to subside in a few days, the exudation growing less and scales and scabs forming, under which new skin is formed . But where the attack is more acute fresh crops of vesicles See also:

• SPRING (from " to spring," " to leap or jump up," " burst out," O. Eng., springau, a common Teut. word, cf. Ger. springer, possibly allied to Gr. QnrFpxecOac, to move rapidly)

spring up and the See also:

• PROCESS

process repeats itself .

In some cases papules are the predominant lesions, but in others, especially when the See also:

• FACE (from Lat. fades, derived either from facere, to make, or from a root fa-, meaning " appear "; cf. Gr. cbatvstv)

face is attacked, the erythematous condition is more marked . A severe attack of eczema is usually accompanied by some slight constitutional disturbance, but the See also:

• GENERAL
• GENERAL (Lat. generalis, of or relating to a genus, kind or class)

general See also:

• HEALTH

health seldom suffers appreciably, unless, as occasionally, the itching is so See also:

• BAD, BCD

bad as to make See also:

• SLEEP (0. Eng. slcepan; Ger. schlafen; cf. Lat. labi, to glide, and " slip ")

sleep impossible . The irritation and See also:

• LOCAL

local heat may be out of all proportion to visible changes in the skin, and in neurotic patients the nervous excitement may be extreme . The attack may centre itself on any See also:

• PART

part of the See also:

• BODY

body, but there are certain places where it more usually begins, such as the bends of the elbows, the backs of the knees and the groins; the groove behind the ears, the See also:

• SCALP (0. Dutch schelpe, a shell)

scalp, the palms or the soles, and the breasts of women . According to its position the form of the eczema is somewhat modified . On the front of the legs and arms, from the See also:

• UNIFORM

uniform redness it exhibits in these positions, it is known as eczema rubrum . On the scalp it is generally of the seborrhoeic type, and in See also:

• CHILDREN, LAW RELATING TO

children; especially when pediculi are present, it will become pustular from microbic infection . On the palms and soles it brings about a thickening of the epidermis which leads to the formation of cracks, and is hence called eczema rimosum . The disease can best be treated by a See also:

• COMBINATION (Lat. combinare, to combine)

combination of See also:

• INTERNAL

internal and external remedies . Internally, when the inflammation is acute, nothing is so See also:

• GOOD, JOHN MASON (1764-1827)

good as See also:

• ANTIMONY (symbol Sb, atomic weight 120.2)

antimony, since this relieves the arterial tension and thus reduces the local inflammation . But this must never be given when the patient is suffering from depression . In other cases, especially for babies and children, small doses of See also:

• CALOMEL

calomel are very beneficial; See also:

• STRYCHNINE

strychnine, See also:

• PHOSPHORUS (Gr. 4ws, light, sPEpety, to bear)

phosphorus and See also:

• ERGOT, or SPURRED RYE

ergot are all useful at times .

When nervous excitement is marked it must be treated with sedatives . See also:

• ARSENIC (symbol As, atomic weight 75.0)

Arsenic and See also:

• IRON [symbol Fe, atomic weight 55.85 (0=16)]

iron are both contra-indicated in this disease, since they increase See also:

• BLOOD

blood formation and hence stimulate the eczematous process . Internal treatment is always best when combined with local treatment, but as a preliminary to this all crusts and scales must first be removed to allow the remedy See also:

• FREE

free See also:

• ACCESS (Lat. accessus)

access to the disease . Locally the aim is (r) to overcome any source of irritation, (2) to protect the inflamed See also:

• SURFACE

surface from the See also:

• AIR (from an Indo-European root meaning " breathe," " blow ")
• AIR, or ASBEN

air and from microbic infection, and (3) to relieve the itching . The See also:

• DIET

diet should be See also:

• SIMPLE

simple but nourishing, and all hygienic precautions must be taken .