Having dry skin bubbles on the hands and feet. Using udder cream. Any medication?
Patient: I have dry skin air pockets on my hands and feet . They don t itch , they don t hurt. It came on 4 years ago when my washing machine broke and I hand washed my clothes for about a year. the soap was very drying and contained a bleach product in it. Now I have been using udder cream and my hands have become soft but the dry skin bubbles are still there and the whenever I wash dishes for a long period of time they become more pronounced. My feet don t have much of these bubbles and I try to scrub the dry skin pocket off whenever get a pedicure , but they keep coming back in the same place. Doctor: Hello Welcome! I would be pleased to answer your question .   From the description of the lesions they seem to be either a hand eczema or contact dermatitis. Which has become chronic at the moment .  The Allergy can be due to external or internal allergic agent. The response to the agent results in an 'itch scratch cycle'. As in the more one scratches the more the area itches and so on. The first step in treatment is to break this cycle by giving relief from itching and instructing the patient to avoid scratching as much as possible. It can occur localised as in your case.   Here is what will help:  1. Clobetasol propionate cream + Mupirocin cream: Mix and apply over the affected area on the right shoulder twice a day for 14 days then switch to Fluticasone propionate cream once at night for 2-4 weeks. In the groin/upper inner thigh use Fluticasone in place of Clobetasol from the beginning. The specialist to see will be a dermatologist and he or she can prescribe these for you. Nothing over the counter will help much, the only product with some benefit is 1% Cortizone cream.  2. Tab Claritin 10 mg twice a day for 14 days, then once a day for 6-8 weeks. Initially the dose can be increased to 2 tablets taken twice a day if there is insufficient relief in itching.  3. Sarna sensitive lotion can be used 2-3 times a day to give further relief from itching. This can be continued even when the above creams have been stopped.  4. Avoid scratching the affected areas as much as possible. This is most important. Whenever it is not bearable soak a towel in ice cold water and keep it on the affected areas or apply the Sarna sensitive lotion.  Lastly keep the affected areas as well moisturized as possible with a moisturizer of your choice.  NOTE: 1% Cortizone cream, Claritin and Sarna lotion can be bought without a prescription.  Please feel free to ask if you have any queries.