Please verify your email address to receive email notifications.

Enter your email address

We have sent you a verification email. Please check your inbox and spam folder.

Unable to send verification, please refresh and try again later.

  • Q&A with Australian Health Practitioners

    Is it possible for my child to get eczema if there is no history in the family?

    Related Topics
    Dermatology Eczema
    Recently my 2 year old son has developed some rough, dry patches on one side of his stomach and aa couple small patches on the back of his arm. They don't seem to bother him. Moisturising them with a vegetable sorbelene helps as does adding to EFA oils to his bottle of milk. Could this be eczema even though there is no family history?
    answer this question

  • Find a professional to answer your question

  • 6

    Thanks

    Prof John Su

    Dermatologist, Paediatrician

    Adjunct Clinical Professor, Monash University, Eastern Health Clinical School Clinical Director of Dermatology, Eastern Health View Profile

    Yes it could well be eczema without a family history. One or two parents with eczema, asthma, or hay fever does make it more likely that the children will also have the condition, but not having any family history is quite common.

    Eczema can be divided into three main types. They can be internal or endogenous eczema, they can be exogenous eczema where the eczema is triggered by irritants or allergens and in the external forms of eczema there certainly does not need to be a family history or genetic tendency. With the endogenous forms, the genetic is complicated, and often there's a combination of both internal and external triggers for eczema.

    Reply to this post
     · 
    Report
    Reply to this post

    You must be a Health Professional to reply to this post. to your account or now (it's free).

answer this question

You must be a Health Professional to answer this question. Log in or Sign up .

You may also like these related questions

Related Fact Sheets
Related Questions

Empowering Australians to make better health choices