Eczema Treatment Care

Eczema, also known as atopic dermatitis (AD) is particularly tricky to manage during pregnancy due to risks of complications for the baby. So dealing with eczema after pregnancy requires special care.

Women between the ages of 16 and 24 tend to be the group most targeted by this most common of skin diseases, although it can affect those as old as 60, and adults and children of either sex. In fact more and more children are being diagnoses with eczema. One of the most challenging groups to treat is the one dealing with eczema after pregnancy.

Not only are women the most susceptible but women who are pregnant or planning to become pregnant have a significantly higher incidence of developing eczema symptoms and also face the steepest challenges in dealing with and managing their eczema after pregnancy.

Birth defects, miscarriage, premature delivery, intrauterine infection and possibly infertility could be associated with either eczema itself or the methods and treatments used to control it, although this is mostly in the group with an eczema known as herpeticum eczema, from the herpes simplex virus. Not only do many women first experience onset of eczema after pregnancy but, frustratingly the severity often increases after conception and gets worse all the way through the postpartum period.

Treating eczema is normally relatively harmless, focusing on corticosteroid use combined with gentle daily cleansing, antihistamines and antibiotics, but treating eczema after pregnancy is considerably more complex and requires other methods to protect your unborn child.

These are the current treatment options for dealing with eczema after pregnancy:

• Aciclovir can be used safely to treat eczema after pregnancy in cases where the herpes virus has been detected by a simple swab test.
• Topical steroids combined with moisturizing with emollients and not using tradition soaps.
• Systemic (oral) steroids. Safe during the third trimester but needs to be carefully monitored while under a doctor’s care. Not recommended during breastfeeding months.
• Narrowband ultraviolet B treatment. Safe during breastfeeding.
• Calcineurin inhibitors can be used for treating eczema after pregnancy but there are caveats; only use in small doses under a doctor’s supervision, as there are risks to the baby associated with its use.
• Immunosuppressive agents like cyclosporin or azathioprine; must be used with extreme caution. Work closely with your doctor to avoid complications to you as well as your unborn child.

Treatments to avoid when treating eczema after pregnancy would include PUVA (Ultraviolet A) and Methotrexate (which is another type of immunosuppressive agent).

With careful management you can control and treat your eczema after pregnancy, but please be sure to work closely with your doctor during the time from preconception to weaning to avoid harmful effects to your baby as well as to your own health.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, March 16th, 2011 at 3:59 pm and is filed under types of eczema. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.