How can I control bad eczema flares without using oral steroids?

Doctor's Answer

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Dr Paul Ang

General Practitioner

I’m sorry to hear about your bad skin condition.

In life, its always a battle. We always have to weigh our odds in everything we do (or NOT do).

Same goes for medication, our first pharmacology lecturer to “choose our poisons wisely”, and very apt indeed.

If your flares are causing you a lot of problems, sometimes the benefits of using them might outweigh the “perceived” risks.

Certainly, there are potential risks of using oral and cream steroids, but they are meant for short term use. In fact, they shouldn’t be the mainstay of treatment (i know a lot of dermatologists will disagree).

They are meant to temporarily reduce the symptoms, until you stop scratching and find the root triggers.

Otherwise if your eczema is real bad, there are other therapies as well, some more toxic than others.

Also sometimes, eczema is a chronic disease, we might have to moderate our expectations slightly, complete cure without relapse is next to impossible.

Take care.

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