Dermatitis Of The Scalp

Seborrheic Dermatitis: Dermatitis Of The Scalp

Dermatitis of the scalp or Seborrheic dermatitis is a usual skin disorder.

It generally affects your scalp, by causing scaling and itching.

Dermatitis of the scalp can also make the skin on your scalp red.

It can also cause dandruff. Seborrheic dermatitis of the scalp, for infants, is well-known as cradle cap.

Other than your scalp, seborrheic dermatitis can also affect your face, back, upper chest and other oily areas of your body.

Dermatitis of the scalp is neither contagious nor harmful, but it can be unsightly and uncomfortable. You can treat seborrheic dermatitis yourself by being familiar with its signs and symptoms.

You can also use a mixture of self-care procedures and buy over-the-counter medications.

Common Signs and Symptoms:

Dermatitis of the scalp usually looks like a patchy scaling on your scalp. It can also look like thick crusts of skin on your head. You may see white or yellow scales attached to your hair shaft.

Your scalp may become red and greasy, covered with scales. You may also encounter small, and reddish-brown bumps that make your scalp itch and sore. The presence of dandruff is also inevitable.

Seborrheic dermatitis usually affects your scalp, but it can also grow in between folds of your skin and parts of your body that are rich in oil glands.

These oily areas include your eyebrows, behind your ears, the sides of your nose, over your breastbone, groin area, and sometimes even your armpits. There are times when your signs and symptoms fluctuate becoming okay then severe the next time around.

In infants, with cradle cap also have the thick, crusty, yellow, or greasy patches. But the condition is not itchy for them unlike in adults and children.

Causes

There is no known exact cause of this condition, but quite a few contributing factors appear to play a role with its occurrence. These factors include oil gland and hair follicle abnormality.

If you have this skin disorder, you may have increased sebum production in the affected areas of your body.

It is also believed that a fungus called malassezia, along with bacteria grows in the sebum. Hormonal problems, physical stress, travel, fatigue, and change of season are all factors for the cause of outbreaks. People with neurological conditions, such as Parkinson's disease, commonly have dermatitis of the scalp.

Treatments

The primary treatment that you can do is apply medicated shampoos. There are lots of over-the-counter shampoos that contain medication, but be sure to pick the ones with any of the following: Ketoconazole, Pyrithione zinc, Tar, Selenium sulfide, or Salicylic acid.

If over-the-counter medicated shampoos don t work, it is recommended that you consult a dermatologist that can give you a specialized shampoo for your condition.