Doctors often prescribe topical steroids to treat the skin condition, but calls are growing to address a possible side-effect of the medication.
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00:00Jordan Hendy has battled eczema since he was a baby.
00:06As I got older the eczema started to spread and my doctor would always tell me to use
00:13the topical steroids on the skin until the redness and everything had disappeared.
00:18Jordan believes his body became addicted to the steroid cream treatment, causing him painful
00:23symptoms when he tried to stop.
00:26It feels like you've got thousands of paper cuts all over your skin and every time you
00:30move it's just like burning and aching pain all through everywhere.
00:35I couldn't walk for longer than a minute for the past two and a bit years.
00:40I couldn't hug my partner, let alone kiss her.
00:43He's now in Bangkok receiving help for what he believes is topical steroid withdrawal.
00:50Jordan moved to Thailand because he couldn't access a suitable treatment back home.
00:56Sadly the support in Australia I would say is like next to none.
01:00I don't know if, I've never spoken to a doctor or dermatologist that has acknowledged it
01:05or even has been, has said to me, okay this is what you've got.
01:09They've never been able to tell me that I have topical steroid withdrawal, I've always
01:13just been told that I have eczema.
01:16It hasn't been formally recognised as a diagnosable condition in Australia, until now.
01:23We are aware of it and we are aware of the need to address the concerns of our patients
01:28with topical steroid withdrawal.
01:30After questions to key dermatology bodies, there's been a breakthrough.
01:34For the very first time, those groups, including the Australasian College of Dermatologists
01:39and the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, have acknowledged topical steroid
01:44withdrawal and recognised it as a rare reaction.
01:48The meeting emphasised that this syndrome exists, it's rare but it exists.
01:53It also emphasised that every individual is a bit different.
01:57Many patients say topical steroids have changed their life for the better.
02:02I've had chronic eczema since I was a few months old.
02:05I haven't noticed any negative side effects at all.
02:10It's not like there's pigment changes or anything like that, the skin is just the same.
02:17As for Jordan, he's welcomed the recognition, but says it's just the start of raising awareness.
02:25It's really concerning and it's scary that doctors still now will prescribe topical steroids
02:30all the time to people without giving them fair warning of what could actually happen.
02:35Jordan's battle with eczema, though, could last for the rest of his life.