To have a face to face doctors appointment for this?

[itchyelbowsandswollenankles]

I have a patch of what I think is eczema on my elbow. It turned up in the last heatwave and was a small dry patch on my elbow. It’s grown over the last three weeks and it’s now quite big, red and itchy.

I filled in the e consult for my doctors surgery and it’s given me a face to face appointment this afternoon in case it’s anything more serious. I’ve obviously had to tell my boss to book it off, and she’s said she thinks it’s ridiculous to see a GP over something so minor!

AIBU to have booked this?

Not on MN.

Same with A&E. Even if your child displays all the signs of diabetes, you have to go to the GP first and wait three weeks (by which time your child will be dead).

Not that I’m aware of. I’ve never really had any sort of skin issues short of your normal teenage acne, which is why this suddenly growing has freaked me out a bit!

I only had mild dry skin, especially in winter. No teenage acne. Nothing to suggest psoriasis. When my mother was dying it flared up again, I was 63. Thankfully it's now under control.

It’s a bit crazy isn’t it? This is why people end up in a&e, because they’re scared away from seeing their doctor

I’m glad to hear it’s under control now!

The nonsense on that thread was dreadful. I was so relieved they went to A&E.

I had Impetigo once. Looked similar and was so itchy I wanted to take a cheese grater to it!

Got cream from the GP and it was soon sortedm🙂

Exactly

I don’t think it’s that as it’s not blistered so much as it just looks like a lot of under the skin spots, almost? I used to know someone with psoriasis and to be honest it reminds me a lot of that, but I hope it’s not!

https://www.london-dermatology-centre.co.uk/blog/skin-conditions-misdiagnosed-as-fungal/

General advice here re getting a proper diagnosis for skin cobditions

I had a telephone consultation for a skin issue back in lock down. They asked me to send photos to diagnose the issue. I ended up being misdiagnosed and having a face to face consultation to get the correct diagnosis and treatment. It wasn’t a serious condition but quite uncomfortable for several weeks which could have been minimised by an initial face to face consultation rather than a telephone one. Try not to worry and hopefully it’s simply that the reason is it would be difficult to diagnose your condition remotely.

The people on here are fucking nuts. Do.you realise that in every other country in the world, seeing a doctor is just the norm, people go whenever they want to and in most cases, its free, insured or cheap enough to self pay. I haven't encountered a GP since I left the UK, people see doctors with specialist knowledge in their condition. Nobody thinks doctors are too important to bother and in Asia, your daughters are encouraged to do medicine so they can also have a family without too much stress. If your son does medicine, he probably didnt get the grades for engineering. I am so sick of reading these hateful comments, dangerous comments and passive aggressive bullshit about seeing pharmacists. You the the emperors new clothes, the NHS seems to have brainwashed the less intelligent people to believe that doctors are God's and shouldn't be troubled. And it kills people. What did the pharmacist say? Most MN comment ever which sums up the idiocy of the sheltered middle class harpies who haven't been out in tbe world.

My last senior manager thought she WAS a doctor. Used to give out all sorts of medical advice to try to stop staff seeing the GP. F idiot.

That was fast!

She thinks it’s a combination of some psoriasis and a fungal infection. She’s given me a cream to treat both and I’m to go back in 2 weeks if it’s not cleared up

If it is eczema, I can highly recommend a product by ILLIYOON called ceramide to concentrate cream, you can get it on amazon.

You ok, hun?

Glad you’ve got something OP. Hope it sorts the itching.

Your boss is rude AF. It’s nothing to do with her. As someone who has eczema and seen how it can flare up and escalate so quickly I completely understand the urgency.

I had similar. Rash all down my face and neck. Telephone consultation prescribed steroid cream. I was not putting that on my face without at least trying to find out what it was. Went through Bupa and discovered it was a reaction to a faulty wax melter. Never needed the cream.

Completely agree. Healthcare professionals are there ideally to catch what's wrong with you BEFORE it becomes a serious or debilitating issue (not that that's necessarily the case with you here, point is you don't know what's wrong with you so you need sensible and qualified advice). Personally, if I'd had that attitude a few months ago, I wouldn't have been diagnosed with something which required a very major surgery before it ruined my health for good. Thankfully it's done and it was done well. But the point was, my symptoms weren't super obvious, I didn't even know that condition existed, but a qualified GP followed by top notch specialists diagnosed and addressed it. Honestly sometimes I truly despair of the holier-than-thou posters who think they're doing the NHS some great service by not consulting before they end up in dire straits. Guess what's more costly for the system? Something that's caught early and managed well or a condition that's worsened over months or years because 'no one wanted to bother the GP'?

Hope it works OP!

Me too because it’s so irritating

Considering its like pulling hen's teeth around here for a GP appointment, I'd be jumping at the chance to go. You're only questioning it because of your bosses attitude which is wrong here.

What cream did they give you?

Glad they could help and hope it clears up very soon.

Trimovate. Apparently it tackles psoriasis and eczema, fungal infections and anything bacterial in one