Conditions and Treatments

3 diseases or conditions that the patient could have had:

1. Contact dermatitis - It is caused by direct contact with an allergy-inducing or irritating substance. Risk of contracting this condition is heightened if the person has any past history of allergies. There are two types of contact dermatitis. The first, irritant dermatitis, is the type which results from contact with acids, alkaline materials or other such chemicals. Allergic contact dermatitis, on the other hand, results from exposure to a material or substance to which the person has become extra sensitive or allergic to. The symptoms of both include skin redness of inflammation, swelling, itching, tenderness, lesions or rashes.

2. Churg-Strauss - Disorder marked by invasion of the blood vessels. Said inflammation can restrict blood flow to vital organs and tissues, sometimes even damaging them. Asthma is a very common symptom of Churg-Strauss, but others can include hay fever, rash, gastrointestinal bleeding and severe pain as well as numbness in the hands and feet. The wide range of symptoms makes it a difficult condition to diagnose. Unfortunately, Churg-Strauss has no cure, but at least the symptoms can be moderated with steroids and other immunosuppressant drugs. The cause of this syndrome is also unknown, but it involves an unusual over-activation of the immune system in a person with asthma. Though an association between asthma medications and the development of the condition has been noted, it is not certain whether those with severe asthma that take them already have a tendency for the development of whether it is caused by the medications themselves.
3. Mixed connective tissue disease - This condition is actually an overlap of three other diseases, systematic lupus erythematosus, scleroderma and polymyositis. The symptoms of mixed connective tissue disease, therefore, all the symptoms displayed by all three of those mentioned diseases. Usually the people that suffer from this disease also have high amounts of antibodies ANA and anti-RNP. The general treatments of this disease are directed towards suppressing immune-related inflammation of the tissues, through the use of anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressant medications. Aside from those, treatment will vary depending on the organs affected by the disease.

Proposed treatments:

1. Prednisone - Medicine used to treat many different conditions including allergic disorders, skin conditions, arthritis, lupus and breathing disorders. It prevents the release of substance in the body that cause inflammation.
2. Hyperbaric Treatment - This treatment involves the breathing of 100% pure oxygen while resting in a sealed chamber that has been pressurized to 1.5 to 3 times atmospheric pressure. Health problems this treatment is used to treat include bone damage caused by radiation therapy, carbon monoxide poisoning and injuries in which the tissues are not receiving enough oxygen.