Atopic Dermatitis Knowledge Centre
- Overview
- Signs & symptoms of atopic dermatitis
- Area of the body commonly affected by atopic dermatitis
- Diagnosis
- Assessment
- General Management
- Education
Management
Areas of the body commonly affected by atopic dermatitis
A patient with atopic dermatitis will typically experience periods where their disease flares with intervening periods where their symptoms are apparently quiescent. As these periods of ‘relapse’ and remittance recur over many years, atopic dermatitis is defined as a chronic disease. The rash can recur in the same locations causing the patient to continuously rub and scratch these areas, which can have an adverse effect on the appearance of the skin over time. Specifically, scratching and rubbing the skin initiates a cycle whereby the skin becomes increasingly itchy the more it is scratched, known as the ‘itch-scratch cycle’.
This ‘itch-scratch cycle’ over time can cause lichenification and/or development of skin papules which may become excoriated and infected. Indeed, patients with atopic dermatitis suffer frequent skin infections, including Staphylococcus aureus, Herpes simplex and yeast and fungal infestations, which can further damage the skin in affected areas. Rubbing of the eyes can result in orbital darkening and/or development of infraorbital folds.
Images of the skin demonstrating excoriated papules
© February 2010 Astellas Pharma Europe LTD.
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The Atopic Dermatitis Knowledge centre contained within www.epgonline.org and available at www.atopicdermatitisinfo.org is intended to be for educational use only and not designed to provide medical advice or professional services.