What are the ill effects of steroid cream for eczema?

[rastababi]

Poor DD has got a terrible outburst of eczema. All over her face, neck, chest, arm and leg crevices sad

GP prescribed a big goody bag of lotions to try out, one of which is a steroid cream (hydrocortisone).

She advised me to only use it occasionally or when her eczema is particularly bad, which obviously I will.

A friend of mine also suffers from awful eczema and often tells me she avoids using steroid cream when she can.

Does anyone know the ill/side effects?

I have to use it on DDs face, even her eye lids. She's 2.

TIA.

[Flumpetty]

The worries a lot of people have a because when the steriods were first developed they were a lot stronger and the side effects weren't known so a lot of people with severe eczema ended up with thinning of the skin etc. In some children it could actually stunt growth.

The hydrocortisone now is a lot weaker and a lot safer. I imagine you've probably got a 1% hydrocortisone and you'd really have to use it a heck of a lot to cause major damage.

The best thing is to use it at first until the skin has cleared and then for a couple of days more to make sure the skin underneath is also healed. Then you try to keep on top of the eczema with emollient and just use the hydrocortisone a couple of days a week.

I have had to apply it a couple of times round my DS's eyes. What I did was apply it else where and then use the same finger to gently wipe round his eye so I wasn't actually applying cream as such but here would have been some tiny dregs on my finger.

A lot of my info on this comes from the National Eczema Society who had a brilliant acticle in their mag on just this topic. According to this article dermatologists see a lot more children with thickening of the skin where parents haven't used steriods than the do thinning where they've used it too much.

I don't really know a lot about facial eczema. DS has it on legs and feet. I really think your doctor should give clearer advice on what is safe for the face though as faces are more sensitive. "Don't use it too much" isn't monumentally helpful advice.

[GrimmaTheNome]

I'm not an expert - my DH is - DD has a patch under her eye and quite a bit on legs, and he was adamant that steroid creams should not be used on the face because of thinning. Esp near the eye where the skin is thin anyway. (If its been specifically prescribed for your DD obv ignore him but use the minimum. )

His main experience is that when it comes to non-steroidal treatments, the Diprobase ointment is much better than the cream. You can use this freely (obv not so much it gets in the eyes) - it does seem to be good.

[rastababi]

DDs cream is actually 0.5% so very mild.

Thank you for your advice, it's very helpful. Feel a bit in the dark about it.

[DinahRod]

Read a lot of reports that GPs underuse steroid cream as it can thin the skin after prolonged use. The danger then is that the eczema is under treated and even become infected/ It takes a confident and informed GP to prescribe.

[Flumpetty]

Yes, I felt the same with my DS.

Then, as time goes by you then get so many people offering so much advice and promising that this cream they've heard of is a miracle cure, although it contains shed loads of 'parfum' etc that can only really make it worse that it all becomes a bit much !

That's why I joined National Eczema Soc. They have a lot of free fact sheets on their web site as well www.eczema.org/

I offer advice when asked for it and sympathy always. Eczema is utter pants and can take over your life.

[acebaby]

We were advised that using a mild steroid cream for a day or two when necessary is unlikely to lead to problems - even on the face round the eyes.

I have used hydrocortisone on my face, including my eyelids from time to time since I was two with no ill effects.

As DinahRod says, there are dangers to not using it if it is prescribed. DS2 has had loads of antibiotics because of infected eczema, for example, and at one point we had to resort to stronger steroid cream to get it under control. We now use hydrocortisone for a day or two as soon as it flares up and his eczema is better controlled.