Dermatitis and Psoriasis.

[ScubaBaby]

To Doctors and anyone with some knowledge!!!!


A thread started earlier about salt water and its affects on cuts etc has brought to light one of my many conditions!

I have both psoriasis and dermatitis on my scalp. Unfortunately I also have very thick long hair so it is very difficult to treat and i even have an appointment with a specialist about it as it is seriously bad.

I am slightly concerned, as I have noticed in previous dives that after diving (in sea) it gets worse.

Is this just coincedental or is there a connection between my diving in salt water and the worsening of my condition?

If it is making it worse - what could I do about it? Since i was young i was never aloud to get my hair wet etc when i went swimming hence the reasons I am asking!

Cheers all x

 

[Rick Murchison]

I fought the same problem for over 10 years. It got so bad that I actually had lesions on the back of my head that would bleed. (My analysis was that salt water had no affect to a slightly beneficial effect in my case - but I think the beneficial effects were from the reduced stress whenever salt water was involved) I went through all the over-the-counter dandruff shampoos and prescription shampoos for the condition - all to no avail (some of 'em did turn my silver baht chain black!). Steroid creams helped (with the lesions, not the flaking) but would lose effect over time. I had been getting involved with Rexall for its herbals, nutritional suppliments and homeopathic remedies, and they had a shampoo, too. It made no claims re: dandruff or psoriasis, but I thought "what the hell, nothing else works, why not try that?" So I did, and after one bottle (about six weeks) the psoriasis was gone, the flaking was gone, completely. That was two and a half years ago, and I've had no recurrence of the condition - and wild horses couldn't get me to switch from my Aestival shampoo.
Try this link:
Rexall
If that doesn't work, go to my Rexall website
http://www.rexall.com/dreamseeker
and click on the "Rexall Products" button, then put "shampoo" in the search window on the products page.
Or, just BC me.
Rick

 

[ScubaBaby]

That sounds brilliant when i was looking at it till i got to the directions:

"Directions for Use

Use daily. Apply small amount to wet hair. Massage gently into hair and scalp. Rinse well. Repeat if desired."

Unfortunately i cant blowdry my hair as it agrovates my condition. And if it takes approx. 36 hrs to dry! I couldnt wash it daily - plus i already use special shampoo to try and control my mad hair!

;-0

 

[gozumutti]

Abby, have you tried olive oil?

 

[Dee]

Have you thought about cutting that long hair? It will be easier to treat your condition, perhaps totally cure it. You can always grow more hair! Just think of the freedom you'd have...no weird after-dive hair, no long hours spent with a blow dryer..just fast and easy!

Yes, after years and years of long, thick hair I am happily a member of the short and curly. I will never again have long hair!

 

[ScubaBaby]

Unfortunately Dee I am not blessed at all when it comes to my hair.

Due to my condition when i was younger and before we knew i really did some damage and damaged the hair folicals. Now I have 2 textures in my hair - the back panel is much more course than the rest.

I also have inbetween hair - it isnt too curly but it certainly isnt straight! So, for me to have it short i'd have to have it shaved off lol unless i wanted to cope with a mess every morning!

 

[Aegir]

I have a very bad scalp condition indeed and also i get dry skin around my nose and eyebrows. Also i get tiny bumpy spots on my chest, back ,triceps and genetalia. I have been to two specialists (dermatologists) about this but they where basically at a loss after trying many different types of treatments. First they said it was a fungal infection and so they gave me coal tarr shampoo and then later when that didnt work i tried an antifungacide (simerlar to an antiobiotic but for fungi) and when that didnt get rid of my condition the doctors basically blamed me for not taking them correctly. The fungacide was called sporanox.I DEFINATELY took them correctly but to no avail. Diving doesnt atually make it any worse or anybetter from what i can notice. There is only one thing that works for my scalp and that is a liquid based scalp application called betamethasone (as valarate). When i use this my scalp condition disapears the next day ( 2 days maximum),completely. This is the weird part that the doctors cant understand at all, the spots disapear from my body as quickly as my scalp condition does when i use betamethasone. More often than not i will use it on the night time when my condition returns, and by the morning it will have got rid of the spots off my body (including those from my genatalia) and sometimes also my scalp. So unfortuanately i am stuck with having to take this medication EVERY time my condition returns. In my case i think that my condition is probably genetic in nature.

My only other advice to you guys with dermatological problems is that you maybe try a UV lamp if nothing else works. I hope this helps a little. If you want to contact me about this you can at - Aegir@scubadiving.com
or just post.

 

[John Reinertson]

I'd be interested in the specialist's response.
Most psoriasis (as doctors define it) can be controlled with various medicines, sometimes involving cortisone lotions such as betamethasone valerate, sometimes using UV light, or a host of other treatments.
The problem we have on the forum is there are a number of other skin ailments often described as psoriasis or Eczema by lay persons (or by many of my colleagues). Some of these are actually other problems and the treatment differs a great deal.
Generally, salt water is relatively neutral to most skin problems. It sounds like your condition is difficult to control under normal circumstances, let alone when it's wet a good bit of the time. I wish you luck, but I don't have any miracles to offer without examining and testing in person.

One real shot in the dark is that many adults with perpetual dry, itchy skin turn out to have cow's milk allergy. That casn be tested for simply by avoiding any and all dairy products, sauces, gravies, or baked goods with dairy products in them for about four days, the reintroduce milk to your diet suddenly. If it makes you itchy and sick, you have learned something. If it doesn't, you can be pretty confident milk is not a problem, and the only thing you've had to invest is a weird diet for 4 days.

Good luck
Dive safe and flakeless;
John Reinertson

 

[DameDykker]

I have a colegue with high colesterol levels and psoriasis. She went on a fat free diet to control the colesterol and added lots of fish oils. That decreased the colesterol levels and as a side effect the psoriasis almost disapeared. So try fat fish or buy it in capsuls or tablets if you don't like fish. You'll probably need something like 4-5 capsuls a day or 200g of salmon. Waitr a months or two for results and enjoy your fish!

DSAO

 

[ScubaBaby]

Cheers Dame

The only problem is I prefer my fish to be swimming infront of me - rather than swimming down my throat - but i'll give the capsules a go!

Now i just have to sort out the dematitus! All good fun!

Cheers xxx