Hand infected (Warning, gross photos)

[PIPpityDoodah]

I do have another thread on this but I've been on antibiotics since Thursday and it's just getting worse.

It's still hot and new puss filled blisters are appearing.

Shouldn't the antibiotics have kicked in by now?

It's so sore and embarrassing

Yes, you can buy a hand held DermaHealer which may help you.

Gosh that’s exciting! Do keep us updated!

So sorry you have been going through this OP. But I did want to send a HUGE thank you for starting the thread.

I have been to my GP at least 3 or 4 times over the years with these type of horribly itchy hard spots on my hands that turn into blisters and deep cracks. Each time the response has been akin to “oh that looks odd - maybe it will clear up by itself”, or one time a diagnosis of hand foot and mouth.

Well it is identical to dyshidrotic eczema, which I had never heard of so didn’t know how to treat. Now I know what it is!!! Thank you.

Sorry you’re going through this, it’s miserable having a skin condition and such a pain on your hands. I’ve got a skin condition that affects my hands and I’m well and truly fed up of it. I’ve tried four different tablets from the hospital and while a couple have helped a bit nothing has cleared it.

I’ve now got an appointment in January at this particular clinic where all the dermatologists in the department will be there to get their heads together to see if there is anything else.

I kept getting told it’s ‘just eczema/ dermatitis’. They eventually did a biopsy and cut one of the blisters out intact so they could look what was in it, and finally got a diagnosis they changed their tune then!

I hope your not waiting too long for your appointment.

I have a friend who gets really bad eczema and she finds light therapy the only thing that works. It’s not a home job unfortunately; it has to be a very particular wavelength and a strong dose for a very specific amount of time. But it does work for her, and in between times she can use steroid creams to control more minor flare-ups.

As someone with various types of severe psoriasis I feel for you.
Light therapy needs to be done in hospital as an outpatient. You can buy the kit for home but it's expensive.

In the meantime to help with itch, cold water will help. It's the one thing I use for my skin.

Sympathies. Been following. I also get little itchy spots. Had a bad bout of it shortly after a bereavement and lots of other life stressors so I think that definitely plays a part. But getting less stressed when you itch all over is not exactly easy!

I think stress is fundamental to it but I have so much going on that I can't rectify or stop stressing about :(

Yeah, sometimes life has stressful events you can't do anything about. :-(

I was given dermol500 to keep it moisturised but every time I put it on it bloody burns and comes up all red like this :(

The clobaderm burns now too when I use that

If I get WATER on it it burns.

And the pompholyx spots keep popping up on my thumbs and they so itchy

Am feeling very fed up :(

That sucks. I am sorry.

You might be allergic to one of the ingredients. Not just the active ones, either.

I've only ever been told to use Dermol 500 for washing, not to moisturise. And that seems to be going out of fashion as well as you can wash with any emollient.

Can I ask what you use to wash the rest of your body and your hair as these are times you likely aren't wearing gloves? If it's normal shower gel and shampoo this may be setting off your hands as well.

Soap and I do have bubbles but it's weird, my hand is thw best after I've had a bath and washed it with soap.

It seems best when it's just left dry. If I moisturiser it with anything it gets mad.

If I just leave it and use thw clobaderm it's OK. But it get super dry and wrinkly.

If I give it a scrub with dove soap it looks almost cleared up the next day

My workplace tried me with dermol500 as a handwashing substitute and moisturizer instead of the regular handsoap but I never got on with it - if I had any kind of current dermatitis flare-up/skin cracks/inflammation at all on my hands then all it did was make it burn and sting, even after "washing" it off with water, so I stopped trying with that one.

What I've found to be helpful in addressing the 'unavoidable stress'-skin flare vicious circle is one or more aromatherapy massages - deeply relaxing and helps me generally feel better about myself

Sometimes it's even been possible to head off a flare up of my PPP* by having a massage

Hope you get back in control of this soon - it's horrible and so frustrating

*realise you no longer think it's PPP [TBH it looks nothing like mine] - this is just a comment about managing the stress

Yes I think I'm going to give up on it because it doesn't seem to be helping :(

I honestly don't know what it is and nobody seems interested in trying to diagnose it, just cure it. But surely knowing what it is would help that process massively?!

Also does anyone know what I can use as a moisturiser? My right hand looks 30 years older than my left but all the moisturisers I have are either scented or don't help (dermol 500, aquous cream)

The dermatologist I saw was very scathing about my GP referring and not diagnosing himself - apparently the pitting on my nails was the clincher for psoraisis and therefore ruled out eczema

Also only ever get it on my palms and soles - but don't think that's such a strong marker

.

Have you tried Epaderm cream? Can also use it overnight with gloves on with the thick ointment version of it to really lock in moisture. Neither of them sting my hands, even when they're really bad.

I hate that you're still suffering with this OP, people really don't understand how much this can affect your quality of life if they don't suffer from such issues like we do.

Thankyou, I'll order some

It's awful isn't it? It's really getting me down TBH. And the fact that this referal is likely to take months and then who knows how long to actually start any treatments.

It's such a prominent place too so it's so hard to not get anything on my hand, even reaching in a bag of crisps the other day make it burn. I wish it was on my left hand at least!

And it's also quite embarrassing, it doesn't look nice and people can be funny.

My son is autistic and he's been a bit funny with me making him food, I don't take offence, he can't help it, it's the way his brain works but I just wish I could know what the he'll it is or what is causing it.

It's so random too. Someone the spots appear and I put the cream on and thwy go in 24 hours and some just cluster and start a new patch.

My hand is very sore and dry and I've taken to just wearing a single cotton glove when out as it just seems to protect it.

My husband is now calling me MJ (Micheal Jackson) and Mickey (Mouse)🤣🤣

@PIPpityDoodah I’ve been following your thread and I’m so sorry that you’re not any further forward with this. It’s worth making friends with the dermatology secretaries and routinely ringing to see if there any short notice cancellations you could fill. I’d give them the heads up you’re planning to do this.

I was a secretary but the hospital didn’t provide any system to hold on to a list of people happy to fill cancellations, they even took off the ability to book appointments at one point, but we still had a coordinator we could instruct if necessary.

Aqueous cream is a terrible moisturiser and has not been recommended for years. It's very mild but even worse, some people are sensitive to the ingredients so it causes on going irritation.

Epaderm is great - even better in the ointment version.

Aah don't use aqueous cream.. It's not suitable as a moisturiser (in fact it made my eczema even worse)
Honestly I found cetraben really good and also epaderm in the past.
Hydrocortisone to reduce the flare up followed with moisturiser.
You can also use epaderm and cetraben in the shower and I think dermol 500 as a soap substitute..apparently you can also use epaderm like a soap, I would avoid the aqueous cream as it personally made my skin burn.