The majority of British eczema sufferers are unaware that they could be put out of their misery by antimicrobial treatment that many doctors have failed to recommend, our online survey for pharmaceutical company Genus, and their eczema treatment, Eczmol, shows.
- 31% of the British population have suffered from or are still suffering from eczema, and 50% of the population know someone who suffers from the condition.
- 23% of past and present eczema sufferers have, or had, more than ten flare ups (when the eczema gets more red, sore and itchy) a year.
- But 71% of the public have not heard of the bacterium ‘staphylococcus aureus’ before, despite it being the most common cause of painful eczema flare ups.
- This lack of knowledge may be due to the fact that 65% of eczema sufferers have never had staphylococcus aureus discussed in relation to their eczema by a doctor.
- And while anti-microbial treatments are effective when it comes to treating staphylococcus aureus flare-ups, 69% of eczema sufferers have never had anti-microbial treatments recommended to them by a doctor.
- Instead, 60% of sufferers use emollients to help their skin, and 41% have tried steroids.
- Despite its effectiveness, 65% have never used anti-microbial treatments. Only nine percent of past or present eczema sufferers say they regularly use an anti-microbial product to treat their condition.
Suffering from ignorance?
Eczema is a skin condition which results in often painful itching, dryness, flaking, blistering and cracking of skin. It affects both adults and children. Antimicrobial agents, such as Eczmol, are among the established preventative treatments for eczema flare-ups, but our survey demonstrates there may be a way to go before many sufferers become aware of the help they may need to ease their skin.
