This is VERY interesting! I had eczema as a kid and had to have allergy shots every week for quite some time. It finally went away, but resurfaced in the same spot when I became pregnant with our first child. Doctor said my hormones probably triggered it. Hasn't returned, thankfully! My little brother had it all over his body......Mom had to put little tin mitts over his hands at night to keep him from scratching and I remember the distinct odor of the tar-based salve we had to use! It was horrible! Poor little guy died before his 3rd birthday of what was described as "interstitial pneumonia".....now I wonder! I was born in "45 and my brother in '47.