Eczema help for an itchy baby -- PLEASE!

[MrsPinecone]

I saw my cousin's 10.5 month old this past weekend. She has AWFUL eczema, and looks sooo uncomfortable most of the time. She's got scaly patches all over and the creases of her wrists and ankles are practically cracking. I even saw patches in her ear and hair.

I saw the eczema really bad on her legs at Thanksgiving, and put some hydrocortisone on it. The baby stopped crying and fell asleep for 3 hours. Obviously relieved, but I know you can't use hydrocortisone on a regular basis.

I don't know what my cousin is thinking-- I don't know WHY she's not doing anything or why her doctor hasn't agressively treated it. Her husband just said "yeah, she's got my sensitive skin".

This is way past sensitive skin. The kid is going to turn into a cranky, miserable toddler and no one wants that!

I am going to email her a list of suggestions if you guys can come up with some for me.

[aimeejo]

My kids both have this.
We went the Dermotology route and what they perscribed was expensive and didn't really work.

My pediatrician says hydrocortosone for everything so we tried that and it does work. We use anything from Eucerine, oatmeal bathes, diaper rash cream and it all helps.
I hope she switched to dye free detergant, and soaps.
I know we can't use Tide or smelly body/hair wash either. And if in diapers you really should have them changed more frequently.

Another thing is to get them out in the sun. I know with mine if I get a really bad outbreak I spend a little time out in the sun and it clears it up.

[cheapdate]

This is not the first time Ive seen these posts and the solution a lot of people have come up with is :to not use detergent in their clothes, use soap,there is a difference .and rise twice and I just read to try Milk of Magnesia on it like a lotion no one knows why this help but it helps a lot of kids.

[austinmomto2]

Both my children and I have eczema-usually pretty mild but it can have some nasty flare-ups.

Right now I am having a bad flare-up and I am using hydrocortizone on it as well as Aquaphor.

For kids (And Adults) these are the usual recommendations:

Baths/showers:

• Only bathe when necessary-at most every other day
• Mild temps
• Don't wash with soap-too drying-plain water or Dove bar soap and Cetaphil is best. I have used Burt's Baby Bees on the kids since it has not fragrance or sodium lauryl/laureth sulfates-it is outstanding!
• Don't completely dry off before putting the moisturizer on-put a fragrance free cream or ointment on-Cetaphil, Eucerin (worked best for us managing the skin but not flareups), Aquaphor-(has worked best for us for treating flare-ups).

Laundry:

• No dyes or fragrances used in the detergents

Hand soap:

• Stick with Dove bars. No drying antibacterials.

Sunscreens:

• Zinc Oxide, Titanium Oxide, Mineral blockers no Avobenzone or any of the chemical blockers.

Also, certain foods can cause flare-ups since eczema and food allergies have been shown to be linked. Might check to see if certain things she is eating flares it up.

Some doctors recommend Elidel cream but it can be harsh for babies. I have used it myself and it works. Something to have them think about and mention to the dr.

[kdownie]

This copies what a lot of other people have said, but what we do with my DD.

Bath - dove sensitive skin body wash for her body, something very mild like Johnsons for her hair (and I got a ton of Cleanteam for free that I can't use now! :-) )

Laundry - she is not very sensitive to this, but I try to use dye-free, fragrance free stuff for the laundry

Ointment for skin - Aquaphor has been a God-send for us. DD's excema is mild, but in the heat, she has been having more flare-ups recently. I wash her face a couple times a day with cool water and a cotton ball (no soap), and then, when her face is still slightly damp, I cover the bad areas with aquaphor. Mostly her face, but also the nape of her neck.

I am going to try someone else's suggestion on here for a lotion to use post-bath when she isn't having flare-ups, since that is what we use aquaphor for.

[jkelstaten]

I don't know if they've considered this, but most exczema is caused by allergies. Not only to detergents and such, but food allergies as well. My thought (without knowing) is that they are feeding her something on a regular basis that she is allergic to. If she is drinking formula it's VERY possible that she has a milk/soy allergy. These symptoms can also show up on a breastfed baby if the mother consumes a food that they baby has an allergy to.

My two oldest have both gone through this. When we went to an allergist (DD#1 was 10 months, DD#2 was 6 months) they did food testing, and once we knew what foods to avoid both girls cleared up of all exczema, hives, etc.

A simple test to see if the baby has an allergen in their system is to lightly scratch them on their forearm. Enough to lightly break the skin surface (not enough to cause bleeding by any means, just like if you had an itch and needed to scratch). A person without allergens in them will likely not show any reaction to that. For a person WITH allergens in their system this scratch will result in a raised red scratch mark.

I hope this helps. We had a real battle doing this trial and error and anything I can do to spare kids and parents the misery....

BTW, the first doctor we saw with DD#1 said that "she had sensitive skin", but when we moved and switched doctors the new one questioned why she had hives and exczema and why the allergies hadn't been diagnosed. We were at the allergist within a week. Being a first time parent I had no clue to not trust the original doctor.

[stacy78]

Diddo everything said here. My DS has a milder form but always has a patch of it somewhere on his body. I stopped using dryer sheets and use ivory or dove plain bar soap instead of baby bath products.

[JCausby]

There is a product line called Free and Clear. The shampoos are usually available at CVS, but they can order them for you if not available. The same company has a line called Vanicream with great soaps and other products. You can do a google search and order directly from the company and they will send you samples first - free of charge. The shampoo and conditioner are great for my hair! They have no dyes, no fragrance, and no formaldehyde. I tried Johnsons Baby Shampoo first and it irritated my skin.

[SyLph211]

My DS who is going to be 2 soon, has it bad also on his back and upper arms. We used Dove for sensative skin to wash him in and also Aquaphor. That stuff like other pp'ers is great!!!

[oscamaya]

I enrolled DS in an eczema study at Wake Forest School of Medicine. They prescribed him this new "hydra-gel" drug called Desonate. You put it on up to twice per day. DS has severe eczema on his hands, feet, and back, and it is light to moderate everywhere else. We put it on at night after bath. It really helps to keep it under control.

Our skin care regimen for DS:
-Free and clear laundry detergent only (and only 1/2 as much as the bottle recommends, we add baking soda to help get stains and such out). Don't use fabric softener or dryer sheets on anyone in the house's clothing.
-cetaphil (or store brand) cleanser for baths every other day. His other baths usually just consist of plain water.
-Desonate and cetaphil lotion all over. Aquaphor or vaseline on hands and feet.

Yogurt or other foods that contain probiotics also help to make the eczema better.

Children's benadryl helps relieve some of the itching as well. we give DS Zyrtec now. i don't know if 10.5 month olds can take Zyrtec though.

Desonate is expensive and DS medicaid covers it. I don't know if your cousin has insurance or whatever to cover it, but if they do then this is what I would recommend asking the doctor about for severe eczema.

In the end, you just have to try all the suggestions that you get. It is different for everyone and the only way to find out what works is by trial and error.