| Director
Kazumichi Tsurumachi |
Welcome to our Home page! I am sure many of you have
visited various doctors for the treatment of atopic diseases. "Atopic
gypsies" is a term that refers to people who visit many clinics seeking
better and more satisfying treatment, which I believe is a result
of suffering adverse effects or questioning the use of external preparations
like steroids. Their needs are not satisfied by what doctors provide,
and thus they are forced to go to various doctors.
What is the general method of treating atopic diseases? External steroid
preparations are the standard for the treatment of atopic dermatitis
from university hospitals to general practitioners, and among dermatology,
pediatric, and internal medicine departments. Anywhere you go, external
steroid preparations are always the first choice.
On the other hand, some medical institutions, including ours, are
trying alternative therapies, which some of you might have tried already.
Alternative methods, or withdrawal methods without steroids, include
Chinese herbs, acupuncture, moxibustion, actinotherapy, marine therapy,
anti-oxidation food or super-oxidation therapy. Although some of these
therapies may be effective, I can not discuss their efficacy because,
except Chinese herbs I have never tried them. However, I can confidently
say that these are not causal therapies which try to find and exterminate
the causes of atopic dermatitis.
Controlled diets in which egg and milk intake is limited and exterminating
ticks from houses are examples of causal therapy. About 10 years ago,
when I was practicing in a hospital, I tried tick extermination therapy,
which was effective to some extent. But, at the same time I realized
that this method can be effective on some patients yet not at all
on others. I started paying more attention to environmental factors,
not from the narrow viewpoint of allergies but from a more fundamental
viewpoint: What directly harms skin? I began to suspect chlorine in
the tap water, and since then, have continued to establish a total
causal therapy which combines exterminating ticks and limiting certain
foods with the removal of chlorine from the tap water.
Now, about 70-80% of our patients show very satisfactory results without
the use of external steroids from the very beginning. However, a small
portion of our patients who had used steroids extensively over a very
long period before visiting our clinic have an adrenal cortical insufficiency
in which the natural production of steroid hormones is stopped. In
these cases, sudden and complete discontinuation of steroids would
not only worsen the disease but also lead to a rebound reaction with
systemic symptoms such as dullness, fatigue, numbness, and fever.
It is important to understand that these types of patients have to
continue using steroids for a short period. |
| Tsurumachi Clinic
Dermatology |
| 1-17-4, Nishi, Arakawaoki,
Tsuchiura, Ibaraki Japan 300-0874 |
| TEL 029-842-3046
, FAX 029-842-3227 |
| All
Right Reserved, Copyright (c) 2005 TSURUMACHI CLINIC DERMATOLOGY |
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