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Steroid cream doesn’t help my eczema

Steroid creams are certainly often of great benefit in dealing with acute and severe ‘flare-ups’ of skin activity, but as you state they sometimes don’t always control all of the irritating features that continue chronically. Involved eczema of the hands alone – which you seem to indicate – does obviously suggest features of ‘contact eczema/dermatitis,’ which means that certain contacts you have on a regular, day-to-day routine will be irritating your skin. I am sure that you already avoid ordinary soaps and use an emollient agent for washing.

There are also many things available to try and smooth the surface of the skin and increase the degree of hydration, which then stops the skin from being ‘dry’ and more vulnerable to outside contact agents. They don’t contain ‘active’ chemicals and therefore they can be used regularly, freely and quite safely. There is a useful little booklet simply called ‘Eczema’ available from local surgeries or pharmacy outlets that is very good at explaining the day-to-day control of problems such as you detail.

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