Dyshidrotic Eczema

[*lee-lee*]

i noticed a slight rash on the top of my right hand today. tiny little bumps in a couple of clusters that mostly blend in with my skin. i can see them if i look closely. they're starting to itch a little bit now too.

i'm reading about Dyshidrotic Eczema and it's saying it can be the secondary effect of problems in the gut, it's hereditary and also related to a nickel allergy.

i've had my ears pierced since i was a kid but haven't been able to wear earrings for as long as i can remember. they always make my ears red and itchy and crusty and p%$#@# (sorry, that's gross i know). well i got fed up with not being able to wear them ever so i found a remedy online...coat the post with clear nail polish, thus eliminating direct contact with the nickel. i did that and have been wearing earrings for 2 days now with not too much irritation. a little but i attributed it to just not wearing any for so long that my ears are getting used to it again.

i'm wondering if my new hand rash has anything to do with the earrings and/or eczema?? or am i over thinking this rash??

[Fiddle-Faddle]

I can't help wondering if dyshidrotic eczema is really dermatitis herpetiformis that hasn't been correctly diagnosed...

I have the same nickel allergy problem--but after 2 years gluten-free, I can wear metal earrings for several hours. (I used to last about 10 minutes.)

[Juliebove]

I don't have gluten problems but I do have IgG food allergies and I have had dyshidrosis. Oddly I had it bad when we lived in NY. But I don't seem to have it now. I didn't know about my food allergies then. I just know my allergies were out of control. I was taking Zyrtec and tried all sorts of drops and sprays. Was constantly sneezing and had a lot of hives.

I found sometimes if I put cortisone cream (or a steroid if I had it) on immediately at the sign of first itch it would usually knock it out right away. If I waited, it could get ugly.

[WW340]

I have had this and I have metal allergies, including nickel. I have not tested metals recently, but I have not had dyshidrosis since going gluten free. Perhaps there is a connection.

[UR Groovy]

I have been breakinig out with this for about 25 years. I've heard too many thories:

GP says irritation from something rubbing (c'mon - if it's that, why do I break out on both feet in the same location and both hands all at the same time?).

Metal allergy - again, why both hands and both feel simultaneously and why is it so cyclical (every few months, it clears up and then it comes back). I've tried to connect it to metals, but I don't see it.

Dermatologist once said stress - I have seen a correlation with stress, but I've also been not stressed and broken out. My last really nasty overnight breakout was directly after an extremely stressful family phone call which ended in nausea, sweating, and panic symptoms.

I've heard that acidity / alkalinity could be a factor, and I have to say that when I'm eating more foods that increase acidity, I tend to have a constant, low grade breakout.

Nobody seems to have ever come up with any clear-cut reasons why, but here's what I think is true for myself: If I'm eating right, and I keep my body in balance (bad/good bacteria as well as Ph) and don't encounter extreme emotional stress, I can stay relatively clear. However, the moment something upsets the balance, I can feel that burn below the skin and then the itching, and then the breakout.

It's been better since gluten-free, no doubt, but it's still there - waiting to pounce. It really gets under my skin.

Info: I'm undiagnosed, so I don't know if i'm Celiac - I haven't had allergy testing since I was a kid - My Mother has it too.

[*lee-lee*]

does anyone know if the nail polish on the earrings trick works? it seems awfully coincidental that i got this rash the day after i wore earrings for 6 hours.

[Jestgar]

You can buy little plastic sleeves for your earings

[*lee-lee*]

well that seems like a much better solution to smearing nail polish on the posts and waiting for it to dry! i'll check the next time i'm out at the store. thanks Jestgar!

[Jestgar]

I had a sister in law with a severe nickel allergy and these worked for her.

[*lee-lee*]

do you know if they're hard to find in stores? can i find them at Walmart or a cheap-o jewelry store?

[Jestgar]

I'm pretty sure I found them at a drugstore, near the ear ring display. Should be easy. The ones I found came in a little package and weren't very expensive.

[fedora]

I have had this for years. I get it on my hands. Mine is directly correlated to wheat. I have seen several medical practioners and had to figure it out on my own. Mine was so bad at one point that I could only use my thumb and forefinger on one hand. It had gotten infected. horrible!!! When I still ate other gluten but not wheat I did not get it unless I began to cheat. Now that I eat no gluten at all I still get a few bubbles here and there. My dr. says that that kind of rash is definately linked to allergies. I have no metal allergies that I know of. I did have a problem wearing my earings all the time (I never take them out except to clean them) a few years ago, they are gold and I don't know what they are alloyed with. I have been able to put them back in and I wear them all the time.

I am wondering why I still get a few bubbles. It is definately linked to when I get intestional issues. I don't know if I get CCed or if it is just a sign of imblance.

[LikeAttractsLike]

This is an old post, but I couldn't resist - I've had what I'm guessing is dyshidrosis since I was a child - small, insanely itchy bumps that would rupture and scale over.  They were between the toes, and along the insides of the arches - never the outside, where the skin was thick. They went away in my teen years, and came back in my 20's, but on my hands, mostly between the fingers.

 

My doctor said it was eczema and gave me a steroid cream, but it didn't help, and I stopped using it.  It didn't really look like eczema, and it didn't respond well to anything eczema is supposed to respond to.

 

I have a lot of allergies (food and nasal), and my doctor put me on Zyrtec. And Zyrtec worked great - my allergies really improved. But over the next few months, I started to react to things I'd never reacted to - like nickel. I couldn't even touch my keys any more. And the rash on my hands got so much worse. The rash started to spread across the backs of my hands, and nothing I put on it helped. The skin got really thin and would tear with the slightest scratch.

 

Eliminating Zyrtec was the first key to getting the rash.  For about 4 years, it slowly healed.  I still get recurrences, sometimes with subcutaneous itching that never erupts, but makes me a little crazy. But it's was a lot better since I eliminated foods that I'm allergic to (there is no question that I have Oral Allergy Syndrome).

 

For the record, I've been gluten free for about 6 weeks, since my wife self-diagnosed as gluten intolerant.  Since eliminating gluten, I've seen improvement with the rash (dyshidrosis?), a reduction in brain fog, and the migraines I've suffered my whole life have started to clear up.

[nvsmom]

Glad you are feeling better. if you want to discuss the topic more, you might want to start a new topic as this thread is five years old.

 

Welcome to the board. 

[Lock]

OP could be me, I got my ears pierced at age 16 and had a terrible time healing,  Looking back, a friend did it with a sewing needle and put plain cheap posts in. Eventually I bought gold posts and they healed a bit. But over the years I could never wear any earring but gold or sterling silver.

 

I also have the dysidrosis. I have read that it is connected to nickle allergy but it is not a direct contact. I get it in both hands and feet and I know I'm not touching nickle with my feet when they are in socks and shoes.

 

According to the studies it is an association, not a cause/effect. So not that I know about gluten sensitivity, I feel certain the dysidrosis is related to the gluten and the gluten is related to the nickle allergy.

 

Now, I can't even wear gold or silver. I've tried the plastic earrlings and they don't work either. I think my system is so sensitive now that it is the contact alone it rejects. I get rashes with clothes that are supposedly clean and detergent free rubbing in areas where I think it is just the touching I'm reacting to. I hope gluten-free helps all this stuff.