Excema ?? How does it look when it starts?

[smellymelly]

Ds2 who is 3 months old has very small raised bumps on the back of his hand, and as dh has asthma, hayfever, and has had excema, and I have hayfever, I am a little concerned this could be the start of excema.

Could it be anything else?

He is breastfed, but I have resorted to giving him and his twin sis one bottle for their last evening feed. To do that going throught the night thing!!

[hunkermunker]

Is it red/dry? My eczema is, but it can look different in different people. Could he be allergic to the formula?

[Sponge]

Unfortunately breatsfeeding is no guarantee of no eczema or asthma and the odd bottle doesn't cause them although the b/f does help to protect against these things.
It could be a bit of eczema but young babies get all sorts of minor skin rashes which often sort themselves out.
My dd has eczema and new oubreaks tend to manifest themselves as dry, slightly rough patches, although they can look a bit spotty.
Ds had very dry skin as a new baby but now at 8 months his skin is clear although I do play it safe - oilatum in his bath, don't use soap etc.
I think all you can do is be careful with his skin and keep an eye on it.

[Enid]

could be a bit of dermatitis, avoid fabric softener, bath bubbles etc and see if that helps?

[PrettyCandles]

Can I piggyback on this thread and ask a question too, please?

My dd is 2, we're not an atopic family (though I get a bit of hayfever and have some mild contact allergies). She is obviously sensitive to London water on her face and we use Aveeno, aqueous cream or Diprobase to protect and treat her skin. Ds had the same problem, but it passed by about 18m. Now dd is developing a scaly patch on her side, and little spots inside her elbow creases. This morning she scratched them and told me that they hurt her.

Is this eczema? Does it start like this, at this age?

[smellymelly]

I forgot to say that I use a 'wash it ball' to wash his clothes, so no soaps or detergents, I do use comfort baby softener though.

Also we only use dermol in the bath as all my others have had dry skin, so no bubbles or soaps etc till I know they are clear of excema.

[Chandra]

Removing the softener can really help. DS was fine with Aqueous Cream for a while but now reacts to it.

Prettycandles, you can develop eczema at any age.

[bunny2]

smelly, def stop using comfort - can really irritate skin. I had the same skin worries with dd at 12 wks and went to see the gp who presecibed Doublebase to be used liberally several times a day. Her dry patches cleared up within days.

[hsanders]

Prettycandles or anyone else, can you tell me where you buy the Aveeno products from? I cannot find them anywhere and my nine week old DS whose father has ezcema is starting to look so sore.

[PrettyCandles]

I buy it from Boots in Brent Cross, but I think I've seen it at health food shops and some independent chemists.

[hsanders]

Thanks Prettycandles

[QueenEagle]

ds3 started with eczema at 7wks. It looked like tiny red spots all over his tummy and back but not itchy then after a few weeks developed into dry patches all over his body. It cleared up completely when we went abroad on holiday when he was 7mths old. Now (he's 2) he has a patch on his back and his ankles and round his mouth and cheeks.

ds4 aged 16wks has it too. His is only on his face and looks like a cheese grater has been rubbed over him. It's dry, flaky, red and weepy at times.

Both use dermol in the bath when it's really bad and dermol cream during the day to keep moisturised.. Twice a day 2.5% hydrocortisone ointment which is brilliant but can only be used sparingly but it only needs to be used for a couple of days before it virtually clears.

[cabbageline]

My HV gave me a sample pot of Epaderm,which is like a luxurious vaseline and is suitable for any dry skin conditions. Worked wonders on my ds2 excema - better than using Hydrocortisone!

[smellymelly]

Thanks - I will leave the comfort for a while, it doesn't seem to be getting any worse, so hopefully that will help.

[pragmatist]

Yep - my ds' eczema looked like that (small raised bumps) to begin with.

Also was breastfed.