For some reason, no one cares about the question of whether cirrhosis is contagious, whether it is possible to get sinusitis, or arthritis through close contact with a person suffering from this disease. But as soon as it comes to any chronic skin disease, people immediately have a fear of infection and an unwillingness to communicate. And everything is explained quite simply. All other diseases, with the exception of skin diseases, do not have such unpleasant external manifestations. And in healthy people who are little aware of the causes of psoriasis, neurodermatitis or eczema, naturally, an internal defense mechanism is triggered: “be careful – it is dangerous!”
Still, is eczema contagious or not? Is it possible to communicate without fear, contact, live under the same roof with a patient with eczema? To dispel all your fears and doubts, we will tell you about this inflammatory skin disease in detail, identify the causes of eczema and describe the mechanisms of its development.
Causes of eczema
Eczema is a multifactorial disease. This means that a disease can occur due to many factors or a combination of them. The main reasons for the appearance of eczematous manifestations include:
1. Factors external and internal. External irritants in this case can be skin injuries (mechanical, thermal), skin contact with toxic chemicals (household chemicals, building materials, varnishes, paints, etc.), an allergic reaction of the body to certain foods. Internal factors provoking the onset of chronic dermatosis are caused by disturbances in the work of the endocrine, digestive, vascular, nervous systems, as well as infectious or chronic diseases of internal organs.
2. The stress factor. Yes, the onset of the disease can be caused by a nervous breakdown, depression, stress, severe fright or nervous strain. Unfortunately, this fact has been established for sure, but why shattered nerves serve as an impetus for the onset of eczema, scientists still cannot answer. It is impossible to say that eczema is contagious, in this case – it is clear to everyone.
3. Weakened immunity. Indeed, as soon as the body’s defense mechanisms fail, a variety of diseases, including skin diseases, begin to attack it. In this case, a person does not have enough strength to fight, therefore any diseases progress and develop without hindrance. Get infected with a weakened immune system? Impossible! Which again proves the unreality of infection with eczema upon contact with a patient.
4. The factor of heredity. Yes, there is a genetic predisposition of a person to the onset of eczema. It should be understood that there may not be direct inheritance from parents to children. At the same time, eczema can appear in a child whose parents have never had this disease. The mechanisms of the formation of heredity are so complex that any person can be at risk of contracting one or another chronic skin disease. But everyone can also avoid it. That is, summing up the line, we can say that it is not the disease itself that is inherited, but the likelihood of its occurrence.
Development mechanism
What happens when eczema starts and develops? Under the influence of the above-mentioned unfavorable factors, the functions of the object’s immune system are disrupted. As a result, antibodies begin a massive attack on skin cells and cause their increased division, as a result of which specific inflammatory rashes begin to develop on the skin surface. Outwardly, this is manifested by the appearance of erythema, peeling of the skin, unaesthetic erosive lesions, and other clinical symptoms of the disease.
Often, fungal and viral infections enter the lesions, thereby provoking the development of severe forms of eczema. But even in this case, there is practically no danger of infection for a healthy person.
There is only one conclusion – to assert that eczema is contagious in no case is it wrong and unreasonable. Healthy people are much more likely to contract some other disease, but not a chronic skin disease. Therefore, do not refuse to communicate with people suffering from eczema – by doing this you will not bring yourself any harm, but allow the patient to feel not an outcast, but a completely normal member of society.