Eczema is an inflammation of the skin which is very itchy. It is sometimes described as the 'itch that rashes'. This is because when the person who is suffering from Eczema scratches the itch, it results in a rash.
There is no specific known cause of eczema. It usually develops during childhood but in most cases the skin condition improve and may even disapear with age. It is usually by age 3 that the problem clears up, however others may suffer from reacurrances throughout their life because of certain triggers. Eczema is seem to be an over-reactive response to the body's immune system to substances that may cause irritation resulting in an itching sensation.
This skin condition cause skin to be itchy, reddened cracked and dry.
-Itchiness - It is not understood what exactly causes the itch.
- Redness - This is due to increased bloodflow because of skin inflammation caused by this skin condition.
-Tickening - This is caused due to the trauma of continuous scratching, when the skin tickens around areas that need to be flexible such as the ankles, the tickened skin may crack as it can't be as flexible as normal.
There are many different types of Eczema but the most common form of eczema that usually flars up during childhood is known as Atopic Eczema. An average of about 20% of the worlds population of children suffers from this form of eczema and an average of 2% of adults. Atopic Eczema usually comes and go's depending on external factors.
