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Unbearably itchy skin is a very common eczema symptom. Nonetheless, scratching only makes the skin condition worse and invites infection, according to Harvard Health Publishing. When itching is very troublesome, eczema treatment often includes oral antihistamines (along with other medications), which are drugs used to stop the itch-scratch cycle of eczema that can bother you in the day and even keep you up at night.
“While antihistamines won t stop the eczema flare-ups from happening, they will help to relieve some of the itchiness, and itchiness is the No. 1 complaint I hear from my patients with eczema,” says Debra Wattenberg, MD, a dermatologist in private practice in New York City.
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If you’re living with eczema, you know that what you do or don t apply to your skin can affect whether red, dry, and itchy skin stays at bay. But sometimes figuring out which products are safe for you takes some trial and error.
“The right skin-care routine can help support skin functioning in eczema, but the wrong one can make matters worse,” says Joshua Zeichner, MD, a dermatologist and director of cosmetic and clinical research in dermatology at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City.
The most common form of eczema is the itchy skin condition called atopic dermatitis, according to the National Eczema Association (NEA). Unlike contact dermatitis, which can be blamed on a specific irritant or allergen, atopic eczema has no defined cause. It appears to be indirectly related to allergies because it s common in people who have respiratory allergy symptoms such as asthma, according to the American College of Allergy, Asthma & Immu
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You’re not alone if you’re dealing with dry, itchy skin right now. Itching is the single most common winter complaint about skin, says David J. Leffell, MD, a dermatologist and the David P. Smith professor of dermatology and surgery at Yale School of Medicine in New Haven, Connecticut. I call it the Doc, I have one more thing. Just as you’re leaving the room, the patient opens up about how itchy and dry their skin is,” he says.
If you’re struggling with chronic dry, itchy skin from a condition such as eczema, you know how much these symptoms can impact your life. “We recently did a study on the overall impact on quality of life in patients suffering from chronic itch and found that the level of quality impairment in these patients is similar to the level of patients who experienced a stroke,” says Shawn Kwatra, MD, dermatologist and assistant professor of dermatology at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. The research, which was pu
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