New study to help people better manage eczema

Researchers from the University of Southampton are part of a £2.6million study that aims to improve the information and support given to parents, children, and young people with eczema.

The ECO (Eczema Care Online) project, which is led by Dr Miriam Santer in collaboration with the University of Nottingham, will develop an online toolkit that people can access and use alongside their current treatment. 

It is being funded by the NIHR Programme Grants for Applied Research (PGfAR).

The Southampton team are developing two digital interventions (one for parents and children and one for young people), over the next 15 months before starting a trial to test their effectiveness.

Dr Santer said: “The online intervention will not replace current health care for people with eczema but will supplement this by providing evidence-based information and behavioural advice to help people and families manage eczema.”

Dr Ingrid Muller, Academic Programme Manager, added: “Eczema can be a very debilitating condition that affects so many people. Our aim is to provide extra support in an accessible format that will help people keep control of their eczema.”

The project is expected to run for five and a half years. Colleagues in Nottingham will be carrying out systematic reviews looking at the safety and effectiveness of topical steroids. Both teams in Nottingham and Southampton along with researchers in Bristol will recruit participants for the trial to assess the online tool, which will be run from Southampton.