Sore hands

[npdw]

Looking for some advice with the state of my hands please! I’ll attach picture. I’ve tried everything and absolutely nothing works to help! Working hands cream on overnight with gloves, hydromol, zerobase, fucidin H cream, aveeno to name a few. It first came up just on my middle finger after I had my firstborn in 2021 and then it would come and go but I’ve not long had my second child 4 weeks ago and it’s been constant since mid pregnancy. I went to doctors and was prescribed a skincare regime consisting of zerobase, dermal 500 handwash and sylanar ointment but it’s done nothing. The nurse said it was dermatitis, but I think it’s something else. Could anyone please advise? Thank you!

Try eumovate. The ointment not the cream. That’ll clear it

Thank you! Never heard of that before. Where would I buy that?

Over the counter in Boots. It’s a steroid and it’ll knock that on the head in days

the whole moisturisers thing like dermal etc just does nothing whilst you’re like this. Needs treating first to actually get rid of it

Definitely looks like contact dermatitis to me, needs steroid cream and lots of moisturiser. Eumovate is what the Dr prescribed for me, weirdly i got it after covid, ( not sure that you can buy it over the counter might have to ask the pharmacist) then Palmers cocoa butter, the fragrance free version is one of best moisturizers, one of my sons has had eczema since babyhood and has tried loads of different creams and says that this is the best.

Thank you both so much for the reply. I will try to get it at boots first but if not, will head back to GP and request it from them. It’s just such a hassle trying to get an appointment these days at the GP, I always feel like a nuisance haha

Out of curiosity, did yours look like mines? And did it start spreading all over your hand? It has also started on my left hand slightly which I’ve never had before

My hands crack and bleed if I use liquid soap so I use either bar soap,Castile soap or Dri pak pure liquid soap flakes as can be used for hand washing as it’s just pure soap and really gentle

OP I’m a GP, as you’ve already had synalar I’m not sure having eumovate makes much sense as both are steroid creams, but synalar is the stronger one anyway… also I’m not sure you can get eumovate over the counter? I thought it was prescription only!

It does look like dermatitis to me. If that’s the case and you’ve used the synalar for at least 2 weeks then I’d ask for an even stronger steroid cream like dermovate from your GP. Sometimes dermatitis here needs stronger steroid creams as the skin on the palm is thicker than elsewhere.

Do you have any history of eczema? What do you do for work? Any chemicals/dyes? Do you have to wash your hands a lot? How long have you used the synalar for? And do you feel it or the moisturisers have made things better or worse or just stayed the same?

The other thing that can sometimes look and feel very similar to dermatitis is a fungal infection - like athelete’s foot but in your hand basically. If that’s the case then moisturisers and steroid creams will often make it worse if anything. And you could try lamisil once over the counter for it, or nizoral cream from the GP, and maybe even oral fluconazole if needed (need a prescription).

If your GP is struggling to improve this for you and it’s been going on for months it would be reasonable to ask for a dermatology referral.

Sorry only just checked the thread, mine was never as bad as yours but definitely starts in one place, really itchy then when the steroid cream calms it down it seems to spread from that place up the fingers. Almost looked like burns. I do have a history of allergies and mild eczema. Mine did clear up with eumovate followed by moisturiser when it dried out but takes a while. One of my sons has had eczema badly since a child and his hands have looked like yours as an adult, the Dr gave him steroid tablets in the end as the creams weren't working.

Presume you've addresed anything that could be making it worse like soap, detergents etc, I only have to touch washing up liquid or handwash that is strongly perfumed and I'll get itchy patches within an hour. So hard when its on your hands, hope you get some relief soon💐