Treating ear eczema depends on both the underlying cause and area it affects. If you have seborrheic eczema, you may need to apply an antifungal ointment to the affected part of your ear. Your doctor might also prescribe a topical steroid to reduce inflammation, especially if the skin behind your ear is affected.
Eczema is a skin condition that affects approximately 28 million Americans of all age groups. Painful skin lesions, irritation, and skin inflammation are few of the eczema symptoms that are generally observed in the patients. It can happen anywhere on the body and most commonly seen on the neck, elbows, back side of knees, lips, eyes, ears and more.
Are you facing scaly, itchy or dry patches behind your ears or on the earlobes? If yes, then probably you are suffering from ear eczema or ear dermatitis. It’s a medical condition for the skin inflammation, dryness, and itchiness that may occur behind the ears, pinna of the ears or on the outer skin of the ears. There are several types of eczema, identified by the underlying cause. Most of them can affect your ears in addition to the rest of your body.
Types of Eczema on Ear/Eczema on Earlobes
- Atopic Ear Eczema — It mainly appears on ears and skin behind the ears. It can cause redness, dryness, and inflammation, as well as painful cracks between the ear lobe and face.
- Seborrhoeic Dermatitis — It can be most commonly seen on the scalp, but can easily move down to the ear folds, top of ears, or external ear canal. This type of eczema occurs in ears and around the ears resulting in scaling and redness, and in severe cases crusty cracks.
- Asteatotic Dermatitis —The type of eczema usually affects the individuals of older age and can be caused by climatic changes.
- Contact Dermatitis — This type of eczema is caused by irritants like hair products or allergens like metals, jewelry.
Ear Eczema Pictures
Ear Eczema Symptoms
Ear Eczema symptoms are way too similar to those of eczema on other parts of the body. Individuals with ear eczema may experience:
- Scaly and dry skin around the ears
- dry, scaly skin behind the ear
- redness and inflammation
- itchiness in or around the ear canal
- discharge from the ear
For most of the individuals, these symptoms may be mild to moderate, but in some cases, the itching and scratching can become severe and lead to the following:
- scaly patches
- bleeding, and oozing areas of inflamed skin
- infected skin in the ear canal
- extremely dry
People should avoid scratching as this can lead to severe cases.
Ear Eczema Causes
The main causes of skin inflammation behind the ears or eczema on earlobes is still unknown. Both heredity and environmental factors may play an important role in the development of skin allergy. The allergens in the outside environment are basically those that carry out an allergic reaction.
Eczema on ear can be caused by various factors that usually include contact with various triggers like metal jewelry, hair dyes, soaps, fragrances and more. Most common irritants/triggers include:
- Hair products
- Heat
- Disinfectants
- Smoke
- Perfumes
- Rough fabrics
- Earrings
- Cellphones
- Headphones
- Makeup
- Other personal care products
When to visit a doctor?
We recommend all the individuals to take their skin condition seriously. Seek immediate medical help in the cases like the swelling resists, itchy areas do not improve, redness persists and the open areas accompanied by pus.
You might need to seek medical advice in the following cases:
- when you constantly scratch the same skin patch
- the itchy patch looks infected
- when the rash is itchy and where it appears
- as soon as the symptoms arises
- whether the skin condition comes and goes over time
- whether there’s any family history
How is it Diagnosed?
Your doctor may ask you to go for the basic examination of your ears. The concerned doctor may also examine the affected area in a proper manner. They may use the light to look inside your ears to check for any irritation in the ear canal. It is necessary that you consult a skin specialist as they can provide an accurate diagnosis of your ear condition and accordingly recommend an effective treatment for the same.
How to Treat Eczema on Ear/Eczema on Earlobes?
Know more about Natural remedies to treat Eczema on Ear
There are various natural treatments that can be used to treat the skin inflammation, dryness, itching or redness seen in ears and the external areas around the ear and earlobes. The natural treatments or home remedies are one of the primary steps that are taken by the individual and usually includes:
- Washing the ears daily with a lukewarm water
- Using fragrance-free moisturizers on the ears or the affected areas on the ears immediately after taking a shower to lock in moisture
- Avoid irritants or triggers, like jewelry, from coming into direct contact with the ears
- Avoid irritants that have caused eczema flares in the past
- Switching to gentle cleansers and products that are suitable for your sensitive skin
Although Eczema on ears is a non-contagious condition that requires proper care and management. You can do many things to soothe your ears eczema such as go with the complete natural treatments or other recommended ones. Seek medical assistance immediately if you think you have eczema flare-ups to avoid any severe condition.
