Eczema on the fingers hands
The eczema on the fingers hands is a very unpleasant disease. If it is really an eczema and not a fungal disease, you’ll have to reconcile with the fact that without a thorough prevention the issues might probably repeat. How to prevent the development of the eczema on fingers hands and how to treat it, if it appears?
Eczema is basically a protective mechanism of a broken skin. A weakened skin is penetrated with an irritant and the skin is trying to remove it via non-infectious inflammation. This clearly indicates that the prevention of eczema is based on the hand skin care and on removing the irritating stimuli.
Frequent hand washing does not benefit the skin, chlorine in the water dries it. Eczematic skin must not be cleaned using common soaps, but one has to apply soaps which pH is about 5.5. That is the natural acidity of the skin. Alkaline soaps with pH higher than 6 degrease the skin and thereby break its protective film. Never use pastes and abrasives to clean the hands. The water must be always warm, but not hot. Hands shall be dried on air or by shaking the hands, never by scrubbing or rubbing. Apply moisturizing or barrier cream after washing, e.g., Dermaguard cream is able to keep skin moisturized and creates invisible barrier against variety of allergens and skin irritants, without leaving any greasy traces. It provides a protection for 4–6 hours.
Even despite a thorough prevention the eczema can appear again. The fastest way of treatment are prescription corticosteroid ointments. If the waiting period for an examination is too long, you can try to cure the eczema on fingers hands by yourself. A successful remedy requires assessment of the current phase of the eczema.
A dry, reddened and itchy skin with flakes can be lubricated with olive or sunflower oil, zinc-based cream or paraffin cream. Similarly suitable is a pharmacy-compounded Synderman ointment. The hands shall be moisturized as often as possible using moisturizing creams.
Calloused hyperkeratotic skin creating crusts of thickened skin is treated with paraffin, vaseline, almond oil or again with the above-mentioned Synderman ointment.
If the calloused skin cracks and bleeds, a steamed poultice should be applied overnight, or you can prepare an oatmeal infusion with a small amount of olive or sunflower oil. You can also use ready bath mixtures for thickened and calloused skin with cracks. The poultice is applied on the skin and covered with microtene bag. At the end, you should put cotto gloves on your hands.
If there are palpable small fluid-filled blisters forming under the skin and the skin is peeling off in strips, zinc paste, calendula ointment or rapeseed, yarrow, or borage bath might help.
If the skin is oozing and forming reddened and itchy deposits with oozing surface and small crusts, hand baths and poultices are usually used. For these purposes, a highly diluted potassium permanganate of a light pink color, and oak bark or black tea infusion, Solutio Jarisch or 3% boric acid solution are used. After the bath, the hands are to be treated with zinc oil or black ichtoxyl ointment.
If an unpleasant burning sensation occurs during the treatment, the itching is graduating and the skin does not calm but becomes more irritated instead, it is necessary to discontinue the treatment and consult further steps at the pharmacy. If there is suspected secondary infection of the eczema, you’ll have to seek medical treatment and not wait for several days or weeks.
