Eczema treatments leaving some with possible side effects

Doctors often prescribe topical steroids to treat the skin condition, but calls are growing to address a possible side-effect of the medication.

Transcript

00:00Jordan Hendy has battled eczema since he was a baby.

00:06As I got older the eczema started to spread and my doctor would always tell me to use

00:13the topical steroids on the skin until the redness and everything had disappeared.

00:18Jordan believes his body became addicted to the steroid cream treatment, causing him painful

00:23symptoms when he tried to stop.

00:26It feels like you've got thousands of paper cuts all over your skin and every time you

00:30move it's just like burning and aching pain all through everywhere.

00:35I couldn't walk for longer than a minute for the past two and a bit years.

00:40I couldn't hug my partner, let alone kiss her.

00:43He's now in Bangkok receiving help for what he believes is topical steroid withdrawal.

00:50Jordan moved to Thailand because he couldn't access a suitable treatment back home.

00:56Sadly the support in Australia I would say is like next to none.

01:00I don't know if, I've never spoken to a doctor or dermatologist that has acknowledged it

01:05or even has been, has said to me, okay this is what you've got.

01:09They've never been able to tell me that I have topical steroid withdrawal, I've always

01:13just been told that I have eczema.

01:16It hasn't been formally recognised as a diagnosable condition in Australia, until now.

01:23We are aware of it and we are aware of the need to address the concerns of our patients

01:28with topical steroid withdrawal.

01:30After questions to key dermatology bodies, there's been a breakthrough.

01:34For the very first time, those groups, including the Australasian College of Dermatologists

01:39and the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, have acknowledged topical steroid

01:44withdrawal and recognised it as a rare reaction.

01:48The meeting emphasised that this syndrome exists, it's rare but it exists.

01:53It also emphasised that every individual is a bit different.

01:57Many patients say topical steroids have changed their life for the better.

02:02I've had chronic eczema since I was a few months old.

02:05I haven't noticed any negative side effects at all.

02:10It's not like there's pigment changes or anything like that, the skin is just the same.

02:17As for Jordan, he's welcomed the recognition, but says it's just the start of raising awareness.

02:25It's really concerning and it's scary that doctors still now will prescribe topical steroids

02:30all the time to people without giving them fair warning of what could actually happen.

02:35Jordan's battle with eczema, though, could last for the rest of his life.