Eumovate

What is Eumovate?

Eumovate is available as cream and ointment, both containing clobetasone butyrate as the active ingredient. It’s used to treat mild skin conditions where the skin is inflamed (swollen) and itchy. But it’s not suitable for itchy skin that isn’t swollen.

Dermatitis (sometimes called eczema) is an umbrella term used to describe various skin conditions that make your skin inflamed. When you’ve got dermatitis, your skin can get all dry, itchy, and sometimes it cracks and gets sore. There are different kinds of dermatitis, including atopic dermatitis, photodermatitis, and contact dermatitis.^[2]

Photodermatitis, sometimes known as “sun allergy,” leads to eczema-like rashes on your skin. This can happen when your skin is exposed to sunlight or certain substances that cause irritation when they’re combined with light.^[3] There are various types of photodermatitis, including polymorphic light eruption, solar urticaria, and actinic prurigo.

Does Eumovate contain a steroid?

Yes. The active ingredient in Eumovate, clobetasone butyrate, is a corticosteroid (or simply steroid). Steroids are classified in different categories depending on their potency, as ‘mild’, ‘moderately potent’, ‘potent’ or ‘very potent’. Clobetasone butyrate falls somewhere in the middle, as a moderately potent steroid.^[1]

Mild and moderately potent treatments generally come with a lower risk of side effects compared to the strongest two categories.

How does Eumovate cream work for dermatitis?

Eumovate contains clobetasone butyrate, a steroid that works in different ways when applied directly on your skin. It calms inflammation and has antipruritic (reduces itchiness) and vasoconstrictive (narrows blood vessels) effects.

Clobetasone reduces the production of mast cells — cells that release a molecule called histamine, which can cause allergies and inflammation. It also decreases the production of other molecules that are involved in inflammation like cytokines and arachidonic acid.^[4]

How to use Eumovate for dermatitis

The instructions on how to use Eumovate on your skin are generally the same whether your clinician advised you to use the cream or the ointment. It’s best to apply it exactly as your clinician recommended, but you can find some general guidelines below:

• Start by washing your hands before each application.
• Apply Eumovate in a thin layer to the affected skin areas. You can use fingertip units to measure the right amount (more info below).
• Gently massage it into your skin until it’s fully absorbed.
• Wash your hands at the end of the application, unless you’re treating your hands.
• If you’re also using a moisturiser, it’s best to wait a bit after applying Eumovate to allow it to absorb fully into your skin.

A fingertip unit, roughly 500mg, is the amount of cream or ointment you can squeeze from the tip to the first crease of your finger, and it helps measure the right amount of Eumovate you should use. Here’s a quick guide:

• Face and neck: apply two and a half fingertip units.
• Back or front: apply seven fingertip units.
• One arm (without your hand): three fingertip units.
• One leg (without your foot): six fingertip units.
• Both sides of your hand: one fingertip unit.
• One foot: two fingertip units.

You’ll typically apply Eumovate once or twice a day. As your skin improves, your clinician may advise you to use less cream or ointment.

How long does it take Eumovate to work for dermatitis?

It’s difficult to say for sure how long it’ll take. This can vary from person to person depending on the size of the skin area affected by dermatitis, the severity of your condition and how well you respond to the treatment. In most cases though, you might start feeling less itchy and less inflamed after a few days, but it may take more time for the rashes to visibly improve.

But if your skin doesn’t get better within four weeks, contact your clinician and ask them for advice.

What is the difference between Eumovate cream and ointment?

Both Eumovate cream and ointment have the same amount of clobetasone butyrate at 0.05% (meaning each gram of cream or ointment contains 0.5mg of clobetasone), and so will work in very similar ways. But the cream and ointment have different textures because they contain different inactive ingredients (called excipients). As a result, the ointment is greasier than the cream.

That’s why Eumovate ointment works well for dry and scaly skin. It’s better at getting through dry skin compared to the cream, so your skin absorbs more of the active ingredient. So, if your dermatitis causes dry skin, your clinician may recommend using the ointment for better results.

Eumovate cream, on the other hand, has a moisturising base and works well for dermatitis when your skin is moist and weeping.