According to most of my patients with skin disorder, they have tried steroid and did not find cure.
Corticosteroids are quite effective in controlling or suppressing symptoms in most cases. For mild-moderate disorder a weak steroid may be used (e.g. hydrocortisone), while in more severe cases a higher-potency steroid (e.g. clobetasol propionate) may be used. In severe cases, oral or injectable corticosteroids may be used. While these usually bring about rapid improvements, they have greater side effects.
Prolonged use of topical corticosteroids is thought to increase the risk of side effects, the most common of which is the skin becoming thin and fragile (atrophy). Because of this, if used on the face or other delicate skin, only a low-strength steroid should be used. Additionally, high-strength steroids used over large areas, or under occlusion, may be significantly absorbed into the body, causing hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis suppression (HPA axis suppression). Finally by their immunosuppressive action they can, if used without antibiotics or antifungal drugs, lead to some skin infections (fungal or bacterial). Care must be taken to avoid the eyes, as topical corticosteroids applied to the eye can cause glaucoma or cataracts.
Because of the risks associated with this type of drug, a steroid of an appropriate strength should be sparingly applied only to control an episode of eczema.
It has to be noted that, some disorders may come back with more server condition after stopping the steroid. So there is a tendency that much stronger steroid has to be used on each onset of the disorder.
For young patients or children, the usage of Steroid in treating eczema has to be cautious as their body is not fully developed and application of Steroid can hinder kids body development or causing more damage. Therefore, holistic treatment like Chinese Herbs and Acupuncture or Acupressure becomes the first choice by parents.
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