PATIENT INFORMATION

Contact Dermatitis


What is contact dermatitis 

 Inflammation of the skin caused by contact with a specific substance 🔥

 Substance can be an irritant (something that irritates the skin) or an allergen (something causes an allergic reaction) 


What are the symptoms of contact dermatitis 

 Redness, stinging/ burning, dryness, tightness of the skin (irritant) 🔥

 Itchy red skin, with/without scales or blisters (allergic) 


How do you diagnose contact dermatitis 

 Having classical symptoms 

 Physical examination 

 Patch test: small amounts of different substances applied to skin, to check for allergy 


How do you treat contact dermatitis 

 Avoid the irritant/allergen  

 Moisturisers 

 Steroid creams/ ointments 


Why should I worry about contact dermatitis 

 Infection of the skin (impetigo or cellulitis) 

 Discomfort and loss of sleep 


About the author

The i-medics Editorial Team consists of Doctors, Medical Students, Professional Content writers, i-medics Ambassadors and Freelance workers.