The results of a study indicated that those who suffer from skin eczema are more likely than others to suffer from osteoporosis – which may not be possible to diagnose – or fractures.
Among the causes of eczema – and its symptoms include skin redness, swelling and itching – are infection with other diseases or exposure to substances that irritate the skin and cause hypersensitivity.
Eczema is usually treated with topical stimulant hormones or oral antihistamines.
“There are a number of reasons why patients with eczema may be more susceptible to osteoporosis,” said Jonathan Silverberg of the Department of Dermatology, Preventive Medicine and Community Medical Sciences at Northwestern University in Chicago. “It may be that the chronic inflammation associated with eczema has a direct effect on bone mineral density.”
He said that those who suffer from eczema tend to be less active in movement and do not exercise, because excessive sweat secretion increases the feeling of skin itching. Weight lifting exercises help maintain bone density.
Silverberg and his co-author Nitin Garage used a 2005-2006 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey to analyze national-level fractions among those with eczema.
The survey included questions about doctors’ diagnoses of eczema, osteoporosis, and fractures of the femur, spine, wrist, and other bones. Tests to measure bone mineral density were also administered to those included in the study.
Of the approximately 5,000 people included in the study, 7% were diagnosed with eczema, and approximately one-third of this total number suffered from bone fractures.
The study, which was reported in the journal (Hypersensitivity and Clinical Immunology), indicated that of those who did not suffer from eczema, 32% of them suffered from bone fractures, compared to 41% among those with eczema.
