What are topical corticosteroids?
Corticosteroid medicines are derivatives of the natural corticosteroid hormones that are produced by the adrenal glands. These have many important functions in the body, including control of inflammatory responses. Corticosteroid medicines are mainly used for their effect in controlling inflammation, and topical corticosteroids are applied to the skin for the localised treatment of various inflammatory skin disorders. Corticosteroids are often simply called steroids, but it should be noted that they are very different from another group of steroids, called anabolic steroids, which have gained notoriety because of their abuse by some athletes and body builders. Topical corticosteroids for eczema include hydrocortisone, which is the same as the naturally-occurring corticosteroid cortisol, and synthetic corticosteroids such as betametasone, fluticasone and mometasone. They are applied to the skin in the form of creams, ointments and lotions and are the mainstay of controlling flare-ups of
