How to Find Relief During an Eczema Flare-up

Slightly more than 10% of the population in the United States has some form of eczema, which means that, on any given day, scores of people are struggling to find relief during a flare-up.

If you find yourself in this boat, you want the episode to be as brief and comfortable as possible, which sometimes feels impossible.

The skin care experts here at Z-Roc Dermatology — Dr. Matthew Zarraga and Dr. Khongruk Wongkittiroch — understand how frustrating eczema can be during a flare-up, and we’re here to help.

In the following, we review a few tips that can help you better weather an eczema flare-up.

Have the right medications available to you

If you haven’t already, we urge you to come see us so that we can ensure that you have the right medications on-hand to manage an eczema flare-up. This might include oral medications, specialized moisturizers, and/or topical ointments that help control inflammation and itching.

Having your eczema arsenal at the ready can help you control the symptoms so that you’re not scratching your way toward a longer bout of eczema.

The power of light

We’ve equipped our practice with innovative light technology that can help our patients through an eczema flare-up. With phototherapy, we deliver ultraviolet (UV) light directly into the areas on your skin where your eczema has flared. 

The UV light targets the T-cell lymphocytes in your skin, which are cells that control the inflammatory response. By reducing the number of these cells, phototherapy can reduce your eczema symptoms during a flare-up.

A few tips at home

As we’re sure you’re aware, the most frustrating aspect of eczema is that the more you scratch the hard-to-ignore itch, the worse the condition can become.

In most cases, willpower alone isn’t enough, especially if you scratch during your sleep. To avoid doing more damage, we suggest you maintain short, clean fingernails, and you may even want to wear a pair of gloves at night.

You can try different techniques to satisfy the itch, such as rubbing gently, but try to keep your fingernails out of the equation.

Outside of controlling scratching, you can wear loose clothes to reduce irritation on your skin. If the itchiness is extremely high, you can try a lukewarm bath and moisturize immediately afterward to lock in some of the water.

You can use many other techniques, such as meditation or other forms of distraction, and we’re happy to sit down with you to devise a personalized plan of attack for your eczema flare-ups.

For expert treatment of your eczema, please contact our office in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to set up an appointment.