Atopic Dermatitis, (eczema); From the Inside Out

While the redness and rash of atopic dermatitis are visible on your skin, the real story is beneath the surface. Atopic dermatitis is more than a skin condition. It's a disease caused by an overactive immune system that leads to inflammation in your body. It is this internal inflammation that causes the symptoms you know. Atopic dermatitis is called ‘the itch that rashes’ is for a reason. While scratching may offer a short term relief, in the long run you're actually making atopic dermatitis and the itch worse. This is called the itch scratch cycle. Your skin has 3 layers in healthy skin. The top outer layer called the epidermis keeps foreign substances such as bacteria viruses and allergens from getting in. When you have atopic dermatitis the outer layer of skin is weak and more susceptible to inflammation caused by immune cells in the body. The damage done by scratching also contributes to the breakdown of skin cells making it easier for foreign substances to get in. Once these foreign substances have broken through the skin barrier immune cells alert the body that is under attack. These immune cells travel to the lymph nodes which are in the second layer of skin called the dermis. Once in the lymph nodes, these immune cells activate your body's defenders call T helper cells. The immune cells release substances that cause the familiar redness and rash on skin surface. Although these substances normally go away after a short time if you have atopic dermatitis, the cells don't switch off like they should instead they continue the inflammatory process, so the skin continues to react even when your skin looks clear. Even when you have no visible rash, the underlying inflammation is still active beneath your skin. The itching leads to more scratching which further weakens the skin cells in epidermis allowing more foreign substances to get in and increases your risk of infection.
And the scratch cycle continues…
(Credit for film) Sanofi Genzyme and Regeneron are committed to resources to advance research in dermatology in areas of unmet medical needs among patients with poorly controlled moderate to severe atopic dermatitis.

Видео Atopic Dermatitis, (eczema); From the Inside Out канала Eczema Support Australia