Seborrhea (cont.)
What treatments are available for dandruff?
Treatment of seborrhea (dandruff) is directed at fighting the skin inflammation. This is done either directly, by using cortisone-based creams and lotions (which reduce inflammation), or by reducing the yeast that builds up on scaly areas and adds to the problem. Note, though, that seborrhea is not a yeast infection.
What doesn't help dandruff?
- Moisturizing: Moisturizing lotions don't do much more
than smooth out scales and make patches look redder.
- Switching brands of shampoo: Shampoo doesn't cause dandruff. However, medicated shampoos (see below) can help.
- Changing hair-care routines: There is no "right" shampoo or conditioner, nor is there a "correct" number of times to shampoo per week; seborrhea and dandruff are not caused by excessive shampooing "drying out the scalp." Hair dyes and conditioners do not cause or aggravate dandruff.
- Switching antiperspirants: When underarms are red from seborrhea,
almost anything will make them redder, including antiperspirants, even though
they are only aggravating the seborrhea and not causing it.
What over-the-counter products can help
dandruff?
1. Shampoos: Here are some ingredients in medicated
shampoos that you can look for to help control dandruff of
the scalp. All are available over the counter.
You can use any of these either all of the time or just
once or twice a week, depending on how severe your symptoms
are. If the problem quiets down or disappears, stop and
use nonmedicated shampoos. If one kind of shampoo works
for a while and "runs out of gas," switch to another. For
resistant cases, you can even alternate two different types.
2. Creams: Two additional types of medication that help seborrhea are cortisone creams and antifungal creams.
- Cortisone creams reduce inflammation. You can buy them
over the counter in either 0.5% or 1% concentrations. They are safe to use on
the face and will often help in just a couple of days when applied twice
daily. These products also are available as scalp lotions that are applied
once a day, preferably on damp hair after shampooing. You can use scalp
cortisone creams together with medicated shampoos.
- Antifungal creams are often effective, apparently because they reduce the number of yeast organisms living on the skin. Over-the-counter creams include 1% clotrimazole cream and miconazole cream 2%. Antifungal creams also are applied once or twice a day.
As with shampoos, creams should be applied until the
seborrhea subsides. When the seborrhea comes back (and it
will, sooner or later), the creams should be used again.
Next: If over-the-counter products don't work, what can the doctor prescribe for dandruff? »
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