What is "eczema"?

What is "eczema"?

Rebecca Fitzgerald (Dermatologist) gives expert video advice on: What are some of the available treatments for eczema?; How can I prevent eczema flare-ups? and more...

About 20% of the population fall into a category called an atopic diathesis. In an atopic diathesis, your threshold for allergies is set much more sensitive than everyone else. Becuse of this, you can release histamines. If you release histamines into your skin, it itches, and you scratch yourself into a rash. If you release them in your nose, it runs, and if you release them in your lungs, you wheeze. It's a systemic process that presents in the skin as a rash, but it's the same process that's causing rhinorrhea, allergic rhinitis and wheezing.