• COVID-19
  • Allergies and Infant Formula
  • Pharmacology
  • Telemedicine
  • Drug Pipeline News
  • Influenza
  • Allergy, Immunology, and ENT
  • Autism
  • Cardiology
  • Emergency Medicine
  • Endocrinology
  • Adolescent Medicine
  • Gastroenterology
  • Infectious disease
  • Nutrition
  • Neurology
  • Obstetrics-Gynecology & Women's Health
  • Developmental/Behavioral Disorders
  • Practice Improvement
  • Gynecology
  • Respiratory
  • Dermatology
  • Diabetes
  • Mental Health
  • Oncology
  • Psychiatry
  • Animal Allergies
  • Alcohol Abuse
  • Rheumatoid Arthritis
  • Sexual Health
  • Pain

Eczema: Listen for the sound of silence

Article

I find that most parents who bring their children in for atopic eczema have woefully underlubricated the child's skin.

I find that most parents who bring their children in for atopic eczema have woefully underlubricated the child's skin. To make my point in the exam room, I tell the parents "If you can hear your child's skin, it's too dry." Then I rub my fingers over a patch of the child's dry skin and watch the parents' expressions of amazement as they hear the rough, sandy sound. For contrast, I rub a finger over the top of my hand, which is usually well lubricated with lotion. The silence is instructive and evokes smiles all around.

Wanda Lo, MD
San Luis Obispo, Calif.

Related Videos
Lawrence Eichenfield, MD
Lawrence Eichenfield, MD | Image credit: KOL provided
FDA approves B-VEC to treat dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa patients 6 months and older | Image Credit: bankrx - Image Credit: bankrx - stock.adobe.com.
Related Content
© 2024 MJH Life Sciences

All rights reserved.