"Soak and smear" for hand and foot dermatitis

“Soak and smear” helps your prescribed ointment work much better. Soaking hydrates the skin. Applying the ointment straight afterwards seals the water in and helps the medicine get into the skin.

What you need

• A bowl or basin of plain, lukewarm water (no soap or bath oil)
• Your prescribed steroid ointment
• A plain moisturising ointment, such as white soft paraffin
• Cotton gloves or socks to wear overnight

How to do it, every night

1. Soak your hands or feet in plain lukewarm water for 20 minutes.
2. Do not dry them. Gently shake off the extra water.
3. Straight away (within 3 minutes), smear a thin layer of your steroid ointment onto the patches of dermatitis.
4. Apply the moisturising ointment over the rest of the skin.
5. Put on cotton gloves or socks and go to bed.

Do this every night for up to 2 weeks, or for as long as we have advised. Once the skin has settled, we will usually reduce the steroid ointment and keep the moisturiser going.

During the day

• Use a soap-free wash instead of soap.
• Moisturise often, especially after washing your hands.
• For wet work or cleaning, wear cotton gloves under waterproof gloves (nitrile or vinyl).
• Avoid direct contact with detergents, solvents and other irritants.

When to contact us

• The skin becomes more painful, weepy, crusted or yellow (this can be a sign of infection)
• No improvement after 2 weeks
• The rash is spreading to other areas