Infected eczema yet again

[fraggy]

Hi

Just need to vent a little :)

My 1 yr old ds has eczema all over the top half of his body which is constantly being treated for infections. We are now on our 4th lot of antibiotics and looks like we are going back for more tomorrow. He now has lots of little red spots all over his face which seem to be getting worse even with the medicine. When we take him to the Dr all they say is " you have to make sure you manage it properly", we bath him everyday and use various creams etc several times throughout the day.

Does anyone now if the infections are common or am I doing something wrong.

Thanks
x

[RuthChan]

Has your doctor suggested that you should bath him less often? Often the bathing itself can be a problem, especially if you live in a hard water area.
The washing removes the natural oils from the skin, making it dry and more prone to eczema and infection.
If you live in a hard water area you may want to consider buying a filter for your bath. My DH gets awful eczema, as does my DD on a smaller scale. Neither of them have had any problem at all since we bought a bath filter which removes all the chemicals and excess minerals from the bath water.
To begin with, I would recommend bathing him only every two or even three days and see if that helps at all.
Of course you need to keep him clean, but not actually put him in the bath.

[acebaby]

I wonder if there is a chronic underlying infection. If this is the case, you will need a longer course of specific antibiotics for the infection to get rid of it

Has your doctor sent off any swabs to determine what bacteria are responsible for the infection?

Also, if mild steroid creams and loads of moisturiser are not shifting the eczema you need to press your GP for a referral. Your DS might need a stronger creams to clear his skin. For such a young child, these sorts of medicines should really be given under hospital supervision.

My DS2 had awful eczema all over his body, but we managed to get control over it through a short course of a very strong steroid cream, a long course of antibiotics to clear up all the infection (under the supervision of a consultant) and loads and loads and loads of emollient. Now, we just apply aveeno 6 times a day all over his body and use a mild steroid cream when needed. Under that regime, his skin is really clear.

HTH