The Student Room Group

Eczema (sp?) of the scalp... help?!

i have this (according to my GP) and have done for years, it comes and goes but right now it is at it worse ever, spread loads and has lasted a long time.. have tried steroid and non steroid tonics prescribed which havent worked (and sting like crazy!) and now I'm using a prescribed, stronger than t-gel coal tar shampoo. That doesnt seem to be doing much either.

So basically I thought I'd ask you knowledgable lot if you have any ideas of things that might help? I would particularly like to find something I could put on when it flares up which wont make it sting... an ointment/tonic of somekind? I wonder if something like teetree oil might help, dunno but wouldnt mind some advice if anyone has any!

And if anyone thinks it might not be eczema (i have to learn to spell that word) and could be something else please lt me know... its red and itchy, but more sore than itchy small patches which are spreading across my scalp. I end up scratching them which causes scabs.. and maybe scratching them makes them spread? I know I should be asking the gp to investigate more, but they always seem to shrug it off as eczema or a rash (which it definatley isnt ive had it for years!). The only reason i think it might not be ezema is because none of the treatments they've given me seem to have worked?!

Come on clever people tell me what you think!

Cheers :biggrin:
well to be honest t-gel shampoo doesn't really do a lot its more for sebhoriac detmatitus (or however its spelt) basically itchy flaky scalp, i had this problem for years, but i can't remember what it was that i used, i was 7 at the time and it lasted for about 3-4 years and eventually i outgrew it and had no trouble with it. if i were you i would go to thedoctor and explain everything to him/her and argue your point that nothing is working and what can you give me for it... you need to be forceful to get stuff in this world!
Reply 2
My brother had psoriasis/dermatitis and used Alphosyl shampoo, that worked pretty well for him.
Reply 3
ohhh sounds like something similar to what i have. apparently i have a mild form of psorasis (not completely sure about the spelling!). i have it on my elbows as well, its itchy and flaky. i get it on my head but only really at the top, at the front (most obvious place EVER! :mad:) for my elbows i use sudocrem which soothes. ive never used that on my scalp tho. in terms of shampoo, nothing i use seems to make any difference. i find blow drying helps to get rid of some of the flakes tho! btw do u use any hair sprays or do anything like straighten ur hair? cos that might interfere.
does urs seems to improve/worsen at times? this is only my own theory cos im not a dermatologist but i think mine tends to worsen when im under stress. when i was doing my exams i seemed to be itching all the time....but its settled down over the last few months.
sorry about the long post....hope something in here helps u! :smile:
i had dermatitis on my hands, i hated it, it was so itchy, and i was young so i couldn't really deal with it! my hands were red raw, and absolutely covered in little bubbles- i had allergy tests and everything, what stopped it, was i went to a homeopath, and she gave me some pills, and after a week it had gone, and i never have had it again.
Reply 5
hello..my bf gets this...and he was recommended to use Protar (i think)...well its got tar in the name because thats what it uses..its in like a bronze bottle..it's been really effective for him. they have it at boots :smile:
Reply 6
just remembered, its Polytar :biggrin:
that's in neutrogena hair scalp wash
Reply 8
polytar?
well this is concentrated good stuff :biggrin:
Reply 9
I have psoriasis and it makes me look like I have dandruff. I use Head and Shoulders, and seems to help.

Marcus
Same here!! It's so annoying isn't it!! I recently started using this wierd shampoo too. Yes, it does sound like it it eczema. Oh well, hopefully it will go away soon!

MissSurfer
Reply 11
im still under the impression it is mostly caused by stress. being unemployed and having no commitments in the world will solve your problem...
Reply 12
Whew! well i'm glad i'm not the only one.. :rolleyes:

yep, in response to one of you, it definatley gets worse when I'm stressed, but right now I don't feel at all stressed and it has got really bad. This morning I woke up with my head feeling like it was on fire. I'm starting to wonder if the new shampoo might have actually made it worse. It has salisilic (sp?) acid in it which doesnt sound like nice stuff to me. Homeopathy. I think I need to go back down that route, expecially hearing that one of you was cured with it. I used to be a homeopathic freak, I don't know what happened to change me and forget all about that side of things!

Anyway, thanks everyone for the ideas and letting me know that i'm not alone!! Some times you just need a bit of reassurance about these things.

Thanks! :biggrin:
Reply 13
Ooo I had something like this, it was probably the most annoying this ever!!! It was definitely aggravated by stress and was just so gross, gives 'dandruff' new meaning. I went to the doctors, [it itched so much it was horrendous] and he said I had a fungal infection! I don't think he was right because I don't see how that'd be exasperated by stress but anyway, he gave me: "Ketopine" containing Ketoconazole. I used it every time i washed my hair for about 3 weeks and it cleared up :biggrin: But I'm a little worried it might be trying to return. :cool: I really don't think it was fungal 'cause I've had a weird psoriasis-like outbreak all over me before and my skins gone really dry and eczema like too but ah well. I'd tried over-the counter stuff before that hadn't worked btw.
Reply 14
Get yourself a 'Snake Oil' scalp bar from Lush. It deals with my psoriaiss and I was recommended it by someone with eczema who swears by it.

fxxx
Reply 15
do you get any actual hair loss?
Oilatum Scalp Treatment is also meant to be very good.
Reply 17
a shampoo called selegel, i get some from france to sort me out , it's available in the uk tho i'm pretty sure. use that every other day or so and it'll clear you up.x
Reply 18
viviki
do you get any actual hair loss?


well my hair is really thick but i think I lose more hair when my scalp is bad... i dont want to freak myself out by thinking about it though. Hmmm...

why do you ask? :confused:

i know im not going to go bald tomorrow but that has got me a little bit worried... i'm going to take more notice now :hmmmm2: