Dust Mite Eczema?

My journey in addressing the root cause (or presumed root cause) of my eczema: allergies, specifically to dust mites. I’m pretty convinced I have “dust mite eczema”.

I’ve gotten both allergy shots and sublingual immunotherapy (drops of allergen extracts taken under the tongue) regularly. They’ve helped with my allergies, which is great, but not my eczema, at least not yet.

After trying what feels like literally everything else to try to find the “root cause” of my eczema, I’ve come to realize that it’s more than likely either: A. Genetic, or B. Triggered by allergies.

Genetics, or Allergies?

First – genetics: I come from a highly dermatitis and skin disease prone family. My grandma on my dad’s side has psoriasis and eczema. My grandpa on my dad’s side had eczema as a kid. Dad had eczema as a kid and young adult, as did my brother (so severe he was hospitalized for impetigo as a 2 year old). My sister had severe peri-oral dermatitis just before starting college (that really stunk). On my mom’s side, several of my cousins had severe eczema, and my grandpa, at age 90, developed a rare skin condition called Bullous pemphigoid. So, I would be crazy if I didn’t acknowledge I have some genetic predisposition to eczema. That said, my eczema is far worse than all of my family members’ and I seem to be in constant “flare”, while they only flare occasionally. Why is that?

Allergies.

My current hypothesis – allergies. Specifically my dust mite allergy. I think I have dust mite eczema.

I’m highly, highly, crazy allergic to dust mites. I have allergy protective covers on my mattress. I vacuum regularly, and I wash my sheets in hot water and dry in hot air once a week.

Unfortunately though, dust mites are just really stinking hard to avoid. And, they eat dead skin. My condition provides them with lots of food.

I’m allergic to many other indoor and outdoor things, too (namely grass, ragweed, pollen, and cats, to name some of the top hits), but these are easier to avoid. I’m now convinced I’m waging a war against dust mites. I am also convinced that my allergies changed after I had COVID for the first time, for whatever reason. I used to cough, sneeze, wheeze and rub my eyes in the face of allergens. This was so bad growing up that once in the middle of the night I freaked myself out because I woke up to the sound of wheezing, only to realize in my daze that the wheezing was, in fact, coming from me. Now, I don’t do any of that wheezing/sneezing stuff – I just itch.

Dust mite eczema

Back to dustmites – my dermatologist once remarked to me that my eczema was in the shape of an inverse T-shirt. It was very bad on my neck, just above where the collar would be, and on my arms, below where the sleeves of a T-shirt would stop. I sleep in a T-shirt. Dust mites live in beds. It just made sense.

Now, though, my eczema doesn’t seem to follow any pattern and is all over my body. I’m not sure why. Perhaps my immune system is just so revved up it doesn’t know where to attack anymore. Perhaps I’m just so allergic to my current environment, my skin is exploding. Who knows.

What am I doing about my “dust mite eczema”?

So how am I addressing this? I’ve been getting allergy immunotherapy (allergy shots, mostly) on and off since I was in high school. This does seem to have helped. For example, I used to be highly allergic to molds, but now molds don’t even show up as an allergy on my skin prick test (small win).

I’ve just started round 4 of allergy shots. I had shots in high school and college in the Midwest and in grad school in Boston, and I also tried sublingual therapy in Boston and out West, after COVID. I’m convinced allergy shots are the move for me though (even though the literature suggests sublingual therapy, called “SLIT”, is just as productive as shots). I am getting shots once a week, now. I do get a decent flare (or “bonus” flare, given I’m always flared) sometimes after shots. This seems to suggest to me that allergies are a key culprit; I’ll report back if I notice any changes after six months or so.

Cheers to “addressing the root cause” and “avoiding triggers”!

I’m not a doctor. ALL of this is my own opinion. Please speak to your doctor to discuss further.