This information session is to assist adults living with eczema.
Eczema is a chronic inflammatory disease of the skin. While many know that it is characterised by dry, red skin, intense itching and weeping skin lesions, caused in part by a malfunction in the immune system, very few understand the broader impact it can have on people’s lives. There is a lot of information on children with eczema, however many adults are also impacted by this disease.
Join leading experts – Dr Corinne Maiolo and Deryn Thompson RN – as they share information about eczema diagnosis and management and new treatments for adults. We will also have two adults with eczema share their experience of living with this chronic condition.
Webinar recorded: 13 September 2021
Questions
- These new treatments that you mentioned, are they for life or do some people take them for a short period of time until they get better and stop taking them? (watch at 34:28)
- Are changing diet, staying cool and managing sweat all factors that contribute to managing eczema? (watch at 36:27)
- What clothes, fabrics and chemicals are more likely to flare eczema? (watch at 39:21)
- Corrine, you mentioned phototherapy and just thinking of what people have said about going to the beach and their eczema improving, thinking it was the salt water that was actually improving their eczema, you’re saying maybe it was actually the sunlight? (watch at 41:40)
- Is there any particular sunscreen that works better on people with atopic dermatitis, or is it trial and error? (watch at 43:54)
- Now we’ve talked a little bit about steroid creams and there is anxiety in the community about using steroid creams, and I think what you’re saying, was using the cream intensively according to the directions that your doctor or nurse practitioner has given you for a shorter time intensively to get on top of the eczema and then you can back off. Is there any other advice that people should hold off using the steroid cream? When should they start using it? (watch at 44:45)
- I was told once when I went to pick up a steroid cream at the pharmacy, not to actually put it on the broken area of skin. I felt that was the incorrect information, do you support that? (watch at 45:51)
- How safe are steroid creams during pregnancy? Can any of the emerging treatments for eczema be used in pregnancy? (watch at 47:15)
- A couple questions about excessive hand washing, use of hand sanitizers, alcohol-based hand sanitizers at the moment because of COVID, people are really suffering with atopic dermatitis on their hands. Are there alternatives? Are there hand sanitizers that are not alcohol based? What treatments do you advise for people that are really suffering from eczema on their hands? (watch at 49:02)
- Do you have any advice around the use or avoiding perfume and possible deodorants? (watch at 53:07)
- What about food in topical lotions and creams? Should adults with eczema be worried about foods in products that are sometimes targeting for people with eczema? (watch at 55:39)
- I’ve got an adolescent son and some of the non-soap-based cleansers don’t always clean properly – what should I do? (watch at 57:34)
- We might just finish with one last question on mental health. What advice do we have for people? (watch at 58:37)
Presenters
Dr Corinne Maiolo
Dr Maiolo is a qualified dermatologist experienced in the medical and surgical treatment of skin, hair and nail conditions. She is passionate about patient education and supporting her patients through their treatment journey. Dr Maiolo graduated from the University of Adelaide with an MBBS and is a Fellow of the Australasian College of Dermatology. She has worked and trained in metropolitan and rural locations throughout South Australia as well as in Darwin, Wollongong and Launceston. She founded myPRODERM in 2019 and the clinic now services the Adelaide CBD, Adelaide Hills and Riverland. Dr Maiolo has spoken at scientific and educational meetings and events, as well as published in international peer-reviewed journals. She is a reviewer for the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology.
Mrs Deryn Thompson
Deryn is an Allergy & Eczema Registered Nurse and lecturer, with a special interest in nurse education, patient and family education practice and patients’ and their families ‘learning experiences. How nurses use Learning Principles in parent education practice and parents’ learning experiences is her PhD research topic. The nurse-led eczema clinic was created as an outcome of visiting nurse-led eczema clinics in UK, as recipient of SA Health Premier’s Nursing Scholarship. Deryn has local and international publications in eczema management, allergy resources and how people learn within patient education practice. She coordinates and teaches the Post Graduate Allergy Nursing Course at Uni SA and is a member of professional organisations for dermatology, allergy and nursing practice development.
Read more about eczema
Find out what triggers eczema, take a look at helpful downloads and other useful eczema information here.