Flexural involvement in childhood atopic dermatitis.
Note excoriation. AD can lead to a vicious cycle of itching and scratching
AD of the chest
In infants, atopic dermatitis (infantile eczema) usually appears as red, itchy patches that are associated with very dry skin.
In babies, the rash often develops on the cheeks. The rash often feels dry, raw, and scaly
slightly swollen and discolored skin. In people who have white skin, the swollen skin tends to look red. People who have darker skin see a less noticeable color change, which ranges from a subtle gray to violet-brown
Sometimes a child develops a rash that causes patches of slightly raised, dry, and scaly AD.
Adults who have AD often have darker patches and scaly skin, as does this 30-year-old woman.
Scratching can lead to raw, irritated skin that bleeds. Sometimes, the skin opens and leaks fluids.
In the chronic phase of atopic dermatitis, lesions are dry and lichenified.
Lichenification is thickening of the skin with accentuation of normal skin markings; it is a result of chronic scratching or rubbing, which in this patient occurred during the chronic phase of atopic dermatitis.