Q: My daughter is 12 years old. She is suffering from a Fisherman's feet problem i.e., cracks on the sole of her feet. She is having it since the age of 7. I have tried various treatments but there is no 100% result. At present she is applying Moyzen liquid and Lobate cream. The crack is severe in between her toes and sometimes it bleeds. She has become very conscious and cries a lot due to the pain. Kindly let me know what kind of treatment should she take?

A:I am not familiar with the terminology - fisherman's feet problem. Probably your daughter has one of the keratodermas. The skin is thick and it cracks. When the crack is deep it creates a raw area which then becomes painful. Therefore it is important to make the patient comfortable by keeping the skin soft and supple, prevent cracks and hence minimise pain. Long term outcome depends upon the diagnosis and possible cause. Fill in the deep painful cracks with any antibiotic ointment. Then rub the keratolytic ointment on the thick skin, e.g. salytar ws ointment. If this does not work then ointments have to be formulated based upon clinical findings.