Skin allergies

Skin allergies (allergic skin conditions)

An allergy is an abnormal reaction of the immune system to something (an antigen) that most people would not normally react to — when this reaction occurs in the skin red, scaly, itchy rashes or swollen areas appear.

Sigmacort can be used to help relieve the redness, itching and swelling associated with inflammation caused by skin allergies (allergic skin reactions).

There are several different types of skin conditions related to allergies, including:

Eczema (atopic dermatitis) — which causes red, itchy patches of inflamed skin and can be triggered by such things as food allergies or intolerances and exposure to things such as dust mites, pollen or animal fur.

Allergic contact dermatitis — this is a type of delayed allergic reaction that can occur 48–72 hours after exposure to something you are sensitive to. When you have this condition you only need to be in contact with very small amounts of the antigen to produce a skin reaction. This can be a common problem in certain types of jobs such as metal working, hairdressing and cleaning.

Some common examples of allergic contact dermatitis are:

Skin reactions after wearing nickel jewellery
Reactions to perfumes
Face and neck blistering or swelling due to hair dyes containing paraphenylenediamine
Hand dermatitis from rubber gloves
Reactions after topical medications are applied to the skin, e.g. some antibiotics.

Urticaria — can affect any part of the body, appears as superficial very itchy red hives (weals) and usually last for up to 24 hours. Sometimes there is also more extensive swelling (oedema) that lasts longer taking up to 72 hours to subside.

Some examples of things that can cause urticaria include: