An 11-year-old girl developed a skin condition that makes her allergic to her own sweat and tears, which causes extreme pain for the young dancer.
Summah Williams was initially taken to hospital back in 2022, after her mother, Karyn Zimny, thought she had severe sunburn.
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The young girl was suffering from red, inflamed skin that was cracking as each layer of her skin started to shed.
Her mother became even more worried as her daughter was told to stay at the hospital for testing while clawing and scratching at her skin throughout the night.
“When we went to hospital, she had a staph infection, and when she was on antibiotics, her whole face and body shed like a snake from head to toe, the bath would be full of skin,” she said.
Summah was later diagnosed with eczema, and she learned she had developed an allergy - of sorts - to her own tears and sweat.
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As well as the physical pain, it has also triggered emotional pain because she's a keen dancer, and the condition means it could now be painful and potentially dangerous for her to partake in her beloved hobby.
“[It’s] heartbreaking as she loves dancing,” Zimny said.
“When she looks at all her other dance friends, she gets upset and asks, ‘Why can’t I have skin like them?’ It’s heartbreaking.”
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To try and help her condition, Summah is now trialing a new medicine called Dupixent which is given via injection, and is described as ‘subcutaneous injection that’s prescribed for conditions including atopic dermatitis and asthma.’
It’s been noted that, due to the heat, children in Australia are more likely to suffer from conditions such as eczema.
One of the ways parents are trying to soothe their children is with skincare, and the Australian skin brand MooGoo has been inundated with questions and queries from worried parents.
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Chief executive Melody Livingstone said: “We can hardly keep up with demand."
“Our Irritable Skin Balm eczema cream has seen over 70 per cent sales growth since last year, and orders are double what they were this time last year.”
There is no current cure for eczema, only ways to deal with the symptoms. However, there are some simple dos and donts which can be followed to keep discomfort at bay. For instance, it is always advised to never scratch at eczema (I know it’s easier said than done), as this can make it worse.
There are different types of eczema with atopic eczema being the most common, which shows itself as patches of skin that are itchy, dry, cracked and sore.
Chelsea Connor