Flaky & sore skin!!

[Alisontucker]

Hi

I always get really sore cracked skin on my hands after a flare up regardless of the time of year. Does anyone else suffer with this?? Wondering if it's RA related or just coincidence?

Thanks

[Hidden]

How interesting, I was just about to post a thread about this! I suffer with the most horrible dry, flaky skin on my hands. It splits and then I end up with infections in the little cuts on my hands.

I have tried every sort of hand cream, although someone got me Clarins and it's actually helping a little. The other thing that I've noticed is that if I go outside with gloves in the cold weather, my skin splits almost instantly.

I think it's due to my RA meds. What are you on?

[shazmill]

Hi allsontucker. I have this too on my left hand between thumb and finger. I am on salfasalazine

[nomoreheels]

Ooch Alison! Looks similar to mine in winter if I don't use my Clenosan cream so I always make sure I have plenty spare because without it my hands can crack & become red raw. In fact very much like I remember my nans hands were & she had "Rheumatism" but of course none of the meds we are fortunate enough to have nowadays. I'm a bit ott as far as my hands are concerned as I used to be a hand model so have always had a regime to look after them & until I started using the cream it was becoming a bit of a mare. My Consultant couldn't exactly say that it was related to my RD or my meds but as the cream works I haven't bothered pursuing the actual cause. I always wear washing up gloves if my hands are to be in water any length of time, good suede gardening gloves for gardening & medical latex gloves for any other messy dry-out-your-hands type jobs. I normally have fleece gloves for outside wear but just treated myself to some great ski gloves as they were half price!

Similarly to Crashdoll, any cuts easily become infected & can take an age to heal. I always use tea tree oil when cleaning anything skin related & try not to use plasters for too long to allow anything to heal "au naturel".

Welcome, by the way!!

[Jacki08]

I always get dry ,:very itchy skin when my hands are swollen and painful-- the more they swell the drier they get--- and that was before I went on meds. My consultant said it was unrelated but I think it's too much of a coincidence not to be.

[allanah]

Yes my skin gets very dry with the drugs , I feel like a dried up prune with hands and feet . I use Trmple Spa( not advertising lol) products, which are expensive I think but work and I just reapply regularly xx wear gloves and put on Vaseline and gloves and Vaseline and docks at night! Very glamourous but key ps the skin supple! XxA

[shazbat]

Mine started about 2 years ago, I have had RD for over 25 years but never had this. Then I started on Cimzia, when I had been on the drug 12 months I started with sever breathing problems then the skin on my fingers started splitting leaving my fingers raw. I came off the Cimzia finally and took a high dose of steroids for my breathing. And immediately my fingers healed. My Rehumy believes that another allergy has been switched on. Recently I have been on 10 mg of steroids daily until the tocilizimab starts working and the skin condition is back. It's very painful. I'm hoping when my new drug kicks in it will stop.

Shazbat

[Karen77]

Same here. I am on Humira, MTX and Hydroxy. Only started to notice it since adding Hydroxy to the mix, but it could also be weather related??

[Hidden]

Lansinoh HPA Lanolin Cream (breastfeeding cream) works. What you need to do is keep it next to you while watching television and keep applying it, keep rubbing it in well, massage the skin for a minute or so at a time and in 2 days it will be gone. The other thing is to get a good thick cream (in a jar) like Eucerin or generic Eucerin and lather it onto hands well - slip some cotton socks over hands at night and you will have model soft hands...

Wear those rubber gloves when doing dishes or house chores. That will be a sore spot that will keep opening up every time you have hot water for dishes or are using chemicals including and especially vinegar. Good luck. It would be a first if someone said that they think that it's due to RA. It's probably due to colder weather, drier air, putting your hands in water, chemical.

[shazbat]

Now I believe it's definitely the RD or the drugs. I now have this all over my stomach. When I first saw my GP with it he asked if I had it on my feet as usually got it in both places, he was not surprised. My rheumatologist told me that when I had a reaction to the cimzia it had probably switched on another allergy. So yes I do think they are connected. I'm going to try the breastfeeding cream that Hidden has said is good. Hope everyone has a pain free Christmas.

Shazbat