Home remedies, topical creams, and dietary changes may be enough to treat itchy blisters on your feet from dyshidrotic eczema. A doctor may also prescribe medications or other therapies.

Also known as pompholyx, dyshidrotic eczema is a type of eczema that causes dry, itchy skin and small, very itchy blisters on the hands. It tends to affect people with a personal or family history of eczema, and it affects females more often than males.

Although the condition often affects the fingers and hands, itchy blisters can also appear on the feet. Here’s what you need to know about treating and managing dyshidrotic eczema on the feet.

Many people like to start by trying some home remedies to help them live better with dyshidrotic eczema that affects their feet.

Cool compresses can bring much needed relief to your itchy skin. The American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) recommends applying medicated soaks and cool compresses for 15 minutes two to four times a day to help dry blisters.

You might also try some of these options:

  • Apply petroleum jelly to your feet at night and cover with socks.
  • Try putting pure aloe vera on your skin to soothe it.
  • Add colloidal oatmeal to your bath to help protect your skin.
  • Try wet wraps, which entail putting moisturizer on your skin, wrapping it in a damp cloth, and then covering it with dry socks for a few hours.

In addition to applying a heavy moisturizer to your skin, you may also need to apply a topical treatment to your feet.

Topical corticosteroids are among the most commonly used topical treatments for eczema. They target inflammation and help reduce itching.

However, experts caution that topical corticosteroids can have some side effects, such as thinning of the skin. Your doctor may suggest short-term use to see how you react.

Other topical treatments that people use for dyshidrotic eczema on the feet include:

  • topical calcineurin inhibitors, including tacrolimus ointment and pimecrolimus (Elidel) cream, which are nonsteroidal medications that are suitable for longer-term use
  • PDE4 inhibitors, such as crisaborole (Eucrisa)
  • Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitors, such as upadacitinib (Rinvoq) and baricitinib (Olumiant)
  • anti-itch creams or lotions, such as pramoxine

When to contact a doctor for dyshidrotic eczema

Contact a doctor if you’re experiencing flares of your dyshidrotic eczema or if your existing treatment plan doesn’t seem to be working as well as it once did. Your doctor may want to try a different treatment or a stronger medication.

If you tend to sweat excessively, a doctor might also want to try treating the area with botulinum toxin (Botox) injections. Sarilumab (Kevzara) is another injectable treatment option for this type of eczema.

If you notice that your feet are swollen and painful or that the blisters look crusty or filled with pus, get them checked out. A doctor may want to prescribe an antibiotic if you’ve developed a bacterial infection.

If topical treatments don’t work, a doctor may recommend trying an oral medication (that you take by mouth) to treat flares of your dyshidrotic eczema. You might start with an over-the-counter antihistamine such as fexofenadine (Allegra) or cetirizine (Zyrtec) to target the inflammation and reduce the itching.

Other appropriate oral treatments include oral steroids, like prednisone, and systemic nonsteroidal immunosuppressant medications, like methotrexate.

Also known as phototherapy, light therapy uses UV light to treat moderate to severe eczema. Phototherapy reduces the number of specialized cells called T-cell lymphocytes in the skin, which results in less inflammation.

Doctors usually reserve phototherapy as a second-line treatment, meaning they’ll try other treatments first. You’ll typically need to visit a doctor’s office, a specialized clinic, or a hospital to get this type of treatment.

The number of sessions you need will depend on how your skin responds and how well you tolerate the treatment. The AAD notes that some people will have five phototherapy sessions a week for up to 3 weeks. The National Eczema Society suggests that others may need several sessions a week for as long as 12 to 16 weeks.

You might not realize that the food you eat actually contains metals like nickel and cobalt. If you have a metal sensitivity, that metal could be triggering your symptoms.

The AAD cautions that you may need to consider an eating plan that will reduce your exposure to nickel and cobalt. With this point-based diet, foods are assigned point values based on their metal content. You just have to stay under a certain point total.

Tips for preventing and managing dyshidrotic eczema flares

People with dyshidrotic eczema may find that these tips help them manage, or even prevent, flares:

  • Reduce stress, as this can be a significant trigger.
  • Embrace a healthy skin care routine that includes washing with warm (not hot) water and applying gentle, fragrance-free cleaners and moisturizers.
  • Wear moisture-absorbing socks and change during the day as necessary.
  • Avoid tight-fitting shoes, wear open-toed options, or try moisture-absorbing inserts.
  • Watch out for hot weather, as this can exacerbate flares.
  • Avoid scratching blisters, as this can break open the skin and increase your risk of infection.
  • Keep your fingernails trimmed and short to help resist the urge to scratch.

It can be challenging to manage dyshidrotic eczema, which can cause very itchy blisters on your feet, followed by dry, peeling skin. But you do have lots of options that you can try.

If lifestyle changes, home remedies, and moisturizers aren’t enough to manage or ward off your symptoms, some topical medications may help. Doctors may also recommend other treatments, like phototherapy, that may be more effective for you.

Talk with a doctor about your experience with dyshidrotic eczema. Together, you can work on finding a solution that helps you live as comfortably as you can.