Dry Skin

[Psyborg]

I have a weird question. My buddy pointed something out yesterday and I hadn't thought about it until he did. For YEARS I always had super dry skin, especially on my hands that would peel off in very thick layers, usually most severely in the Winter. Now I had always associated that with the weather to be honest...it's cold and dry in the Winter generally, and seemed to happen at other times corresponding with the weather as well.

The odd thing is that once I have been treated for Wegeners I haven't had the skin issues since. This leads me to think they were probably AI related as well. Anyone else have anything like this? It's weird because I dealt with the skin issues since I was a kid, but Wegeners is obviously a way more recent development.

[Dirty Don]

As a kid/teen I had similar skin issues on hands and feet...like you, it seemed to be more related to winter dryness than anything else. As I grew it did not disappear, but did reduce the dead skin activity. Not sure that it ever had anything to do with WG, but since my bout last summer, I have had NO skin issues whatsoever, and in AZ it's as dry as the Sahara some days. Go figure...I'm going to bring that up to the doc next appt. Interesting association, if it even is one. And as far as having WG timewise...through discussions w/ docs & wife, it appears that I've shown some symptoms for over 20 years, and, more recently, have obviously had symptoms for the last 2 years or so, then the big crash this summer. My bad there...typical male ignoring symptoms and not asking for directions!!!! Who said that?!?!

PS: it's questions/observations like yours that may help to create more inroads to this malady...keep asking!!!!!

[Psyborg]

I always ignored the skin issue. My hands would literally lose all the layers of skin to the point of being raw and bleeding in places. It was super uncomfortable. In fact I was afraid when I found out about the extensive handwashing that I'd have serious issues as hand washing frequently aggravated it, yet now I have nothing going on .

I know Prednisone can help with some skin issues, so perhaps it's that at the heart of it.

[HopeinTN]

I started having the same issue with one hand. I thought it was something in my golf glove that I was allergic to so I bought several and it kept happening. Guessing I now have an answers as to what it was. Since being diagnosed and on treatment, not a single occurrance. Wow.

[Sangye]

It may be an autoimmune reaction. I know a child who had a bone marrow transplant and then developed an immune response to the transplanted marrow. By that point the blood cells were all over the body so it's not possible to remove the transplant and be okay. It's a slow death sentence actually, as the body begins to attack every single tissue. No way to treat or slow it. His first sign of the immune response was severely peeling palms.

Obviously you don't have this condition Bob since you never received a transplant, but your response to the meds makes me think you had some sort of AI condition.