#2,383 in Beauty
Reddit mentions of Excipial Urea 20% Intensive Healing Cream, 3.7 Ounce
Sentiment score: 2
Reddit mentions: 3
We found 3 Reddit mentions of Excipial Urea 20% Intensive Healing Cream, 3.7 Ounce. Here are the top ones.
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- Triple action Excipial 20% Urea Intensive Healing Cream helps slough away dry, skin on hands, elbows, knees and feet, restoring the skin's natural hydration system and deeply moisturizing to smooth away cracked, rough skin
- A rich, non-greasy cream that absorbs quickly
- For hands, knees, feet and elbows
Features:
Specs:
| Height | 6.75 Inches |
| Length | 2 Inches |
| Number of items | 1 |
| Release date | October 2015 |
| Size | 3.7 Ounce (Pack of 1) |
| Weight | 0.23125 Pounds |
| Width | 1.75 Inches |
First off, yes, absolutely: Topical steroids need to penetrate the skin, and a bunch of layers of dead plaque scales will get in the way of that. So steroids work a lot better on smooth, "non-scaled-up" skin.
Secondly: Don't peel! There are better ways. To explain why, peeling increases inflammation response and can also cause bleeding, which will in turn increase system steroid absorption, which you don't want (which is why a lot of steroids come with a warning not to use it on damaged skin).
But more importantly, around the edges of a plaque is healthy skin, and by ripping off scales you will gradually be causing the psoriatic skin to increase its circumference, probably (I'm not a scientist) through what's called the Koebner phenomenon.
Also, never exfoliate, for the same reasons.
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In short, to properly get rid of scales, use a keratolytic.
Keratolytics are substances that soften and dissolve the cells of the crusty upper layers of dead skin and cause them to slough off without having to damage the skin in the process. There are several natural OTC keratolytics, including urea (aka carbamide) and salicylic acid. Any oil — coconut oil is popular in this sub — can also act as a keratolytic, but it's greasy and messy.
I've had the best experience with urea, which is not just a great keratolytic, but also an awesome moisturizer. There are various creams on the market, and I have found Excipial 20% to be excellent. (20% is plenty, by the way; there's a 40% lotion called Topix Urix, but it's intended as a callus/corn remover, and is not a good moisturizing lotion.) You can also get creams combine urea and salicylic acid, but again, I've found Excipial 20% to be perfect. (Note: Don't use strong urea products on the face.)
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Lastly, I should add that you should of course avoid getting to the scaly stage in the first place. Get your psoriasis under control by working with your dermatologist to find a regimen that works for you. For me, it's calcipotriene cream twice a day, every day, and short periods (4-5 days) with desoximethasone cream. If you're all "crusted up", you should do an initial 2-3-week period with a superpotent steroid such as clobetasol twice daily to get down to the smooth-skin stage, then follow with a weaker regimen to keep it under control.
La Roche Posay Iso Urea
Excipial Urea 20% Intensive Healing Cream
Looks like exfoliative keratolysis. I use this to treat it.