Seborrheic dermatitis, causes and treatment
Written by:Eczema or seborrheic dermatitis is an inflammatory process of the skin that occurs chronically in outbreaks, with the appearance of more or less extensive plaques of redness and peeling in the so-called "seborrheic areas".
These body areas are those that have more sebaceous glands, such as the scalp - forming dandruff -, eyebrows or nasolabial folds.. Although these are the most frequent, it can also appear in other areas of the body, such as in the retroauricular area, in the auditory canal, in the mid-thoracic line or in the pubis.
Causes of seborrheic dermatitis
Outbreaks of dermatitis are usually caused in relation to a trigger, of which the most frequent is stress. The psychological causes - such as situations of personal anguish or unpleasant emotional states - are those that most often tend to favor their appearance.
Other factors that may increase the risk of suffering from it are, among others, exposure to extreme climates, chemical aggressions such as using topical products that contain high percentages of alcohol, an inadequate cleaning of the skin, having a greasy skin characteristics and bodily diseases. like acne or obesity.
Symptoms may occur in the form of itching, redness - although it does not necessarily occur in all cases -, peeling of the skin or hair loss - if it occurs on the scalp.
Treatments to fight it
The most common treatment to treat it is topical corticosteroid. Corticosteroids are a variety of hormones from the group of steroids, that is, produced by our adrenal glands. Applied through gels, creams or ointments, they have a high effect reducing inflammation.
Other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory topics such as pimecrolimus and tacrolimus can also be used.
