June 27, 2005

Eczema

Eczema isn't really considered to be associated with AS. But in my case I just associate it with my generlly messed up immune system.

from: http://www.skincarephysicians.com/eczemanet/whatis.html
"Those who are genetically predisposed and then exposed to environmental triggers may develop eczema. Many people who have eczema also suffer from allergic rhinitis and asthma, or have family members who do." ...
"Tar treatments and phototherapy are also used and can have positive effects; however, tar can be messy. Phototherapy requires special equipment (lights). Finally, in cases where eczema is resistant to therapy, your physician may prescribe the drug cyclosporine A, which modifies immune response; however, this is used only in extreme cases because of its association with serious side effects."

The above quote mentions the use of the antibiotic 'cyclosporine A' to treat Eczema. This is not surprising at all givin my experience with Ankylosing Spondylitis in which we find that certain antibiotics will bring brief remission of all symptoms - for as long as one takes the drug.

== forums ==
* exellent dermatitis forum, very busy **
http://www.skincell.org/yabbse/index.php

* good software, new and has very few users
http://rockinbabe.proboards26.com/

* yahoo group
http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/eczema-testimonials/

forum - uses outdated software
http://www.eczemavoice.com/forum/index.html
http://www.eczemavoice.com/

* outdated software
http://curezone.com/forums/f.asp?f=100007

* very busy forum on psoriasis ***
http://www.psoriasis.org/forum/


== threads ==
Drinking apple cider vinegar seems to help eczema
http://www.skincell.org/yabbse/index.php/topic,13222.0.html
http://www.skincell.org/yabbse/index.php/topic,14264.0.html
http://www.skincell.org/yabbse/index.php/topic,15038.0.html

Dishydrotic Eczema
http://www.kickas.org/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=0&Number=29243

Eczema  (an itchy skin rash)  (zark)
http://www.kickas.org/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=0&Number=205012

Psoriasis
http://www.kickas.org/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=0&Number=27596

new diagnosis, and recurrence of old diagnoses (about eczema)
http://www.kickas.org/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=0&Number=44997

Itchy - itchy
http://www.kickas.org/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=0&Number=10061

rash!
http://www.kickas.org/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=0&Number=50683

== links ==
* excellent info
http://curezone.com/dis/1.asp?C0=122

* eczema articles
http://www.skincarephysicians.com/eczemanet/articles.html

* links to good quality info on eczema
http://www.itchykids.org.nz/favorite.htm

* eczema - glossary of terms
http://www.skincarephysicians.com/eczemanet/glossary.html

http://www.talkeczema.com/webpages/links.htm

== good info ==
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/eczema.html

http://www.treat-eczema-now.com/info/about/nease-eczema-guide.jsp

== infection ==
* Good section on all things infected, complete with photos.
http://dermnetnz.org/bacterial/staphylococci.html

quoted from: http://www.itchykids.org.nz/favorite.htm
"Staphylococcus aureus is emerging as a major culprit in eczema. As National Eczema Week (September 26-October 3) falls upon us again, London GP and tutor Dr Gouri Dhillon re-examines the management of the condition"

quoted from: http://dermnetnz.org/dermatitis/atopic.html
In some cases management may also include one of more of the following:

* Topical calcineurin inhibitors such as pimecrolimus cream or tacrolimus ointment
* Antibiotics
* Antihistamines
* Phototherapy
* Oral corticosteroids
* ciclosporin
* Azathioprine

== quotes ==

quoted from: http://www.kickas.org/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=0&Number=29243
"I've been told to use liquid washing detergent rather than powder (on clothes). "

quoted from: http://www.shirleys-wellness-cafe.com/eczema.htm
The Healing Begins
I learned from my son's pediatrician, Dr. Paul Fleiss, that my eczema was directly the result of a deficiency of essential fatty acids, mainly the omega 3 fatty acids which are found in abundance in fish oil and flaxseed oil. Certain types of fat-metabolism malfunctions are more often found in patients suffering from eczema and psoriasis than in the rest of the population. Dr. Fleiss gave me a bottle of flaxssed oil and advised me to take two tablespoons of that oil everyday. (Healing is impaired and immune function decreased when there is a deficiency of omega 3 fatty acids)

I started taking 2 to 3 tablespoons of flaxoil everyday. Within 13 days of taking the flaxoil I noticed a dramatic improvement: the swelling of my feet and face had decreased, the itching was less severe, I was sleeping better and my vital heat had returned; I didn't feel so cold all the time.Later I added 1 tablespoon of black cumin oil and one tablespoon of Evening Primrose Oil (EPO) to my diet
[..]
Eczema - Atopic dermatitis is indicated by an itchy, fissured, thickened skin, breaks in the skin, scabbing, flaking, and crusts extension of the patches or lesions or red raised skin patches. They can grow to form larger areas. Some people have dry patches, some have weepy eczema, some have raised, red, inflamed large or small areas, some have deep painful cracks that may be bleeding or oozing. One of the worse aspects of eczema is itching and consequently, the uncontrollable urge to scratch. In my experience, scratching did not make my eczema worse. It only make my skin look worse superficially.  Scratching gave me intense relief and I feel very sorry for children and animals who are prevented from scratching. I experienced the greatest relief in very hot water infused with bentonite or kelp. Upon immersing in the hot water I experienced intense itching (the heat of the water causes a rush of blood to the skin which triggers the itch) but I quickly felt immense relief after burshing my skin vigorously for 3 minutes under the water with a stiff nylon hair brush. After the bath I applied colloidal oatmeal lotion.

Psoriasis -Plaques and silvery scales on the skin, caused by too rapid replication and pile up of skin cells mark psoriasis. The lesions can weep fluids and may form small blisters. Questions & Answers About Psoriasis

No two eczema/psoriasis heal at the same time rate.For example, I  experienced the first 70% of my healing in a matter of weeks following the introduction of flaxoil in my diet, but the other 30 % required an additional year or more to complete the healing process. On the other hand, it took an entire year following the introduction of flaxoil in my son's diet before any sign of healing appeared (he had a large dry psoriasis patch on his shoulder). Most people would think that flaxoil is not working for them if they don't see results after a few weeks. Persit, persevere, and patience is the name of the game here.
== climate ==
from: http://www.medhelp.org/forums/dermatology/messages/30613.html
(Robert Thena) About two years ago I was diagnosed with eczema. Since then I have had itchy spots on my back, legs and arms. I have used prescription creams such as Lac Hydrin and Temovate E to control the spread and itch. Recently I went on vacation for two weeks in France. By the end of the first week, all my symptoms were gone. I have been trying to figure out what in my home is causing the symptoms, and I would like to know if you have ever heard of Soft Water causing this problem. The apartment I stayed in France had rather hard water and was not treated. Since coming home, the symptoms have come back.


Posted by zarkme at 05:09:58 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

June 21, 2005

Essential Fatty Acids

Here is a picture of the metabolic pathway for Omega-6 Fatty Acids, Omega-3 Fatty Acids, GLA, EPA, DHA and also the resultant prostaglandins.

(diagram thanks to www.nutrisana.com/canada/omega.html)

Discussion on fish oil for treatment of immune disorders / AS:
http://www.kickas.org/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=0&Number=202742


Source Saturated fat Omega 9 (Oleic) Omega 6 (Linoleic) Omega 3 (Linolenic, EPA, DHA) Other
Cod Liver Oil
 15%
 ?
 ?
 27%
(EPA=9-10% and DHA=10-11%)

 per ml: Vitamin A 625 IU, Vitamin D 2mcg
Flaxseed oil
 ?
 13%
 16%
 60%
Hemp seed oil
 ~11%
 10-16%
 50-70%
 15-25%
References:
Posted by zarkme at 11:33:41 | Permanent Link | Comments (1) |

June 14, 2005

Vitiligo (a skin pigmentation disorder)

Vitiligo is associated with Spondyloarthritis:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=11246668&dopt=Abstract
J Rheumatol. 2001 Feb;28(2):313-4.
Association between vitiligo and spondyloarthritis.
Padula A, Ciancio G, La Civita L, Scarano E, Ricciuti F, Piccirillo A, Olivieri I.
Rheumatology Department of Lucania, S. Carlo Hospital, Potenza, Italy.

OBJECTIVE: To establish if spondyloarthritis (SpA) and vitiligo occur together more frequently than by chance. METHODS: All consecutive patients with SpA seen in a 6 month period were evaluated for vitiligo by an experienced dermatologist. The control group included the 2 consecutive patients without SpA seen after each patient with SpA. RESULTS: Two hundred thirty-four patients with SpA (131 men, 103 women; mean age 59 +/- 18.3 yrs) were seen in the study period. Of these, 43 had ankylosing spondylitis (AS), 112 psoriatic arthritis (PsA), 14 SpA associated with inflammatory bowel disease, 64 undifferentiated SpA, and one reactive arthritis. The 468 control patients (360 women, 108 men; mean age 68.5 +/- 2 yrs) had various degenerative and inflammatory rheumatic diseases. Eight (3.4%) patients out of 234 with SpA had type A vitiligo. In the control group, 5 (1.06%) out of 468 had type A vitiligo. The difference was statistically significant (p < 0.05). Of the 8 patients with coexisting vitiligo and SpA, 4 had PsA, 2 primary AS, one AS associated with Crohn's disease, and one undifferentiated SpA. Of the 5 patients with vitiligo in the control group, one had rheumatoid arthritis, one Sjogren's syndrome, one palindromic rheumatism, one crystal arthropathy, and one osteoarthritis. CONCLUSION: Our results suggest that vitiligo and SpA do not coexist by chance and that vitiligo should be included in the list of diseases associated with SpA.

PMID: 11246668 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]


There is some discussion of Vitiligo and AS here:
http://bbs.spondylitis.org/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=1&t=000081

Posted by zarkme at 10:54:48 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

Does Michael Jackson have AS?

I am a sufferer of Ankylosing Spondylitis, and the symptoms being observed in Michael Jackson sound oh so very familiar. Also, Vitiligo is associated with spondyloarthropathies (see this link) and we already know that Jackson claims to have Vitiligo (as the reason why his skin is now white).

quoted from: http://news.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=52061
"The 46-year-old pop icon sat ramrod straight in his chair and dabbed his eyes [..]At times Jackson was rushed to a nearby hospital, arrived at court in pyjamas or was so zonked out on painkillers that he could barely sit.[..]The eccentric singer was obviously worn down by the long trial, losing weight as well as suffering back spasms."

quoted from: http://aolsvc.news.aol.com/special4/article.adp?id=20050608123609990001
"Anxiety has a habit of making Jackson sick. At least four times during his trial, he checked into hospital with flu, back pain or dehydration."

quoted from: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1134222.cms
" The well-known US minister, a Jackson family friend, said he met with the popstar at a hospital overnight on Sunday where Jackson received treatment for a back ailment. [...] "Physically he is in excruciating pain ... He's had these back spasms and as even we talked last night he was grimacing in physical pain," Jackson said of the world reknown singer, who left a hospital near his Neverland estate late Sunday, about six hours after he was admitted to the emergency room for back pain. "



Posted by zarkme at 10:52:27 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

June 10, 2005

Elimination Diet

I need to write up a nice simple explanation of how to do food eliminations so that people can figure out how to treat their own food sensitivities. I am sure there are some good web sites out there.. just try google with the term 'elimination diet eg:: http://www.google.com.au/search?q=Elimination-Diet

People uses elimination diets in order to try and find out if there are any 'food allergies' or 'food intolerances'.

Well I am in a rush so I will just post this from http://www.kickas.org/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=0&Number=201541
>> I am wondering about how you test foods

all I do is try and get as close to zero inflammation as possible by eating lots of greens, pears, brocoli, brussel sprouts, etc. Once I am in the clear I :
(a) make a careful note of any tender points (best if there are none), and note any areas that are still a bit stiff (if any), then ..
(b) eat lots of a particular food that I want to test .. no good testing in small amounts or with complicated meals as it muddies the results. Usually the reaction is noticeable after about 3 to 5 hours, and sometimes the pain level peaks about 24 hours after eating the wrong food.
(c) I make a written note of how that food effected me in a food index sorted from A-Z (I keep these notes in a ring-binder next to my bed)


It is important to learn the difference between 'food allergy' and 'food intolerance' as the two are so often mixed up. Some common errors are people saying:
  • "I am allergic to milk", when in fact they are 'lactose intolerant'. In this case the lactose is not properly digested and causes the gut flora to become unbalanced (dysbiosis), thus leading to bloating, tummy cramps, and many hours spent on the toilet.
  • "I am allergic to sulphites / food colourings", when in fact these are chemical sensitivities where the chemical in question is significantly more toxic to you. It is like saying "I am allergic to alcohol" because of its toxicside effect .. ie: being drunk or having a hang-over.

Posted by zarkme at 08:16:32 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |