Contact dermatitis (also known as contact eczema) is a skin disease with very specific symptoms. Bothersome, itchy lesions appear on the part of the skin that has been in direct contact with an allergen or an irritating substance. Most often it is a rash, but from time to time the inflammation may take other forms. Find out how to recognize contact dermatitis.
The symptoms of contact dermatitisusually take the form of a rash. However, depending on the type of contact dermatitis, it can affect different parts of the body. The time between skin contact with an allergen or an irritant and symptoms of inflammation may also vary.
Allergic contact dermatitisusually occurs at the site of skin contact with the antigen, but in some cases may be located at a site distant from the allergen contact. This is the case with hematogenous dermatitis ( eczema ), which occurs when an allergen travels from the site of contact throughout the bloodstream and a so-called baboon syndrome, i.e. reddening of the buttocks area. In addition,allergic contact eczemais also known as a delayed reaction, which means that it does not develop until some time after contact with the allergen. It is worth knowing that the symptoms of an allergic eczema may appear suddenly, despite many years of contact with a sensitizing substance, e.g. despite the long use of washing powder or fabric softener.
On the other hand,non-allergic contact dermatitisis always located where the skin comes into contact with an irritating substance and appears immediately after direct skin contact with this substance.
Contact dermatitis - how to recognize the symptoms?
In the case of contact dermatitis, the dominant symptom is usually itching on a part of the skin exposed to an allergen (metals, plants) or irritants (cosmetics, detergents), accompanied by a burning sensation or soreness of the skin, and a warmer epidermis that is sensitive to touch. Dermatitis most often takes the form of a rash or eczema - red bumps that may ooze (exudate) or take the form ofscabs. Other forms of dermatitis include dry lesions that undergo lichenification (the thickening and darkening of the skin and epidermis), erythema (which is hives that is usually indicative of plant allergy), and scaly skin (indicates photoallergy). Other changes that may appear on the skin include:
- cracks (fissures) in the epidermis
- epidermis with peeling, abrasive or thickened appearance
- dry, red or rough skin (usually caused by detergents)
Don't scratch your allergic rash!
Scratching an allergic rash only provides temporary relief, but can do a lot of damage in the long run. Scratching the rash causes further skin irritation which can lead to severe bacterial and fungal superinfections.