Eczema advice please - suddenly worse esp hands

[Paula2206]

Hi ladies

Can any give me some pointers please regarding my dd (3yrs old) who has eczema, multiple allergies and now asthma.

I know her skin gets much worse when she is run down and a few things have changed recently but I am trying to pin down why her eczema has suddenly got so bad - esp on her hands (each joint an open cut), her face and now diagnosed this week, her groin!

She has been prescribed some canesten/hydrocortisone cream for her 'bits' which makes her cry as it stings, plus her usual stalwart cream Eumovate is really hurting her hands now as well. She cries when I put any cream on her despite having a pretty good pain threshold (no tears at flu jab a fortnight or so ago).

I can think of three changes in her lifestyle which may or may not be affecting her but would welcome any advice, esp as I noticed some of you wise ladies talking about histamine encouraging foods?

She has suddenly started enjoying satsumas and eats at least one a day ay home (plus whatever they provide at school)

She started swimming last week for the first time and again last night. She has been in pools before but infrequently and this seems highly chlorinated. She did start itching her torso whilst at the pool.

We have changed from normal tesco anti bact handsoap to a Dove cucumber one which she loves using....

Can anyone offer me any advice? Right now I do not know what to wash her hands with as they are so sore but at her age and with all the bugs around I need her hands to be cleaned. Hand gels sting like hell so are not an option....

Any advice on food, pools and soaps much appreciated as always here!

Sorry for long ramble... Thank you...

I have a similar three year old although without the asthma.

We don't take him swimming anymore as he was scratching more than swimming when his skin was flared up. Some people say though that the chlorine can actually help if there is bacteria on the hands.

I would stop using soap as such and use an emollient as a soap. We have been using Epaderm as a moisturiser and soap substitute, but there are loads of em to try - you just have to try them till you find one that suits her.

Our best find recently (thanks to a new referral to Yorkhill children's hospital in Glasgow) is Hydromol Emollient ointment - it's made his skin so much softer than its been for months if not years. Might be wormy asking your gp for some to try it.

Final suggestion is - can you bandage her hands for at least some of the day? Will allow some of the cuts to heal a bit and protect them from things getting into the cuts, so cutting down how often she would need to wash her hands too.

Sorry for typos - iPad can be a bit funny with spelling.

Hi greedychops

Thanks for your message. May I ask is the epaderm a special soap version or the large white tub of waxy lard like stuff? We use Hydromol (lard) as well as Eumovate/aveeno/cetraben/hydrocortisone/dermol in bath etc but have no specific hand wash?

Good point re swimming and feel torn between ensuring she learns a safety based life skill and the effect on her skin.

Thanks for your help! Much appreciated.

The epaderm we use is just the big tub of larch stuff but we were told to use it as a soap substitute too as he is sensitive to a lot of perfumes in soap etc.

Although his hair doesn't smell lovely, he still smells clean so that's about as good as we can get I think. We have started using a medicated shampoo just now as his scalp was getting very dry and irritated so his hair smells a nit nicer for the moment, but the epaderm works fine as a hand soap.

We had the same dilemma regarding swimming, but we decided that he would probably learn just as quickly if he started again at 4, and we are hoping that by then his skin will have cleared up a bit [wishful thinking emoticon]

Don't know what you've been told about dermol, but we were advised not to use it for every bath - maybe twice a week - afraid I can't remember exactly why as we were getting an awful lot of information in one session.

Sorry lard not larch.

Thanks Greedychops! Did not know Dermol was not an 'everyday' bath ingredient so that is very useful. Will try Epaderm/Hydromol as a hand wash but usually find it is a shocker to wash off when I have creamed her so can only imagine half of it ends up on the towel - but will give it a go!

Thank you!

My DDs use Dermol 500 as a hand wash which works really well. I decant it into liquid soap containers and everyone uses it in the downstairs cloakroom.

You must not send a small child with eczema swimming in a chlorinated pool.

When my DD has eczema flare ups I use Avène Trixéra body wash and body cream and nothing else.

Help please everyone. DS is 12 weeks and has deveoped bad ezcema on his face and body over the past 2 weeks. Currently am obsessed with trying to discover what is causing this. Before it appeared he was quite unsettled in between feeds while being BF and then when on formula. Not very contented so I started to suspect he was allergic to the milk Aptamil 1. Mentioned this to GP last week and he completely ignored my suggestions. I know it could be the detergent, house mites etc so I am starting to eliminate these things too but just wondered if many of you have found any connection between the milk and the onset of the eczema? Should I push the docs to consider trying the alternative formulas????? BTW he is gaining weight but seems to have a bit of reflux too
Thanks in advance

Sorry meant to post this in new thread didn';t mean to hijack sorry

Hi OP, I am an adult eczema sufferer and also suffered badly as a child from a baby my mother has told me. It is only this year that I have managed to shake it. Due to diet, try cutting down on any food that is a common allergen (eg. dairy, soya, processed sugars, corn- anything that we couldn't eat as cavemen basically!), although your DD may not have an actual allergy she may have an intolerance that could cause eczema- as it is generally caused by diet or environs.

Has her eczema been brought on since she started eating a more varied diet?

I would say that although its important to get them swimming I remember being in a lot of pain after swimming at school due to eczema. Swimming when eczema is in 'remission' should be fine though as it is an irritant not a cause.

I actually have an intolerance to oranges that causes my eczema so as much as she enjoys them see if after a few days without them it goes down.

I cannot recommend highly enough emollient bath oils or washes, they really helped when I was little and I still use them now, E45 and Oilatum (or oilatum junior). Also anything like vaseline as an alternative to steroid creams can only be good.

I hope this helps, good luck, don't feel like you shouldn't push to see a dermatologist although child eczema is very very common, if my childhood had been eczema free it would have made a world of difference.

I know what you mean about the towels - I think you have to use a very small amount, and also we try and avoid needing to wash his hands too often if possible.

Bonsoir -I think there are two schools of thought on chlorine. Some say avoid it, but there have been some studies done of soaking in a chlorine and water bath to kill off bacteria on the skin that have been quite successful for some.

I haven't read the other replies but get some emollient cream (like E45) from your Dr and don't use any soap as it dries the skin out. I use E45 my Dr gave me on my 6 year old, bath oil and shampoo and we're really getting on top of ours.

Put her cream on her when she's asleep, I do it for my daughter every night.

If you're open to trying new things, google but I have heard that 'Dream Cream' from Lush or 100% shea butter are supposed to be a brilliant natural 'cures'.

I would advise stopping swimming until it heals. Then go only once per week and shower well after. Use the soap you used previously to Dove. Also I found Hydromol really good. You are bathing once or twice per day with emoilient oil?

sassie have you used baby wipes or johnsons products on the face? If so then this is the likely cause. Not milk. Very unlikely to be allergic to cow and human milk.

Many years ago when DCs were small a friend's young daughter had awful eczema. She visited a complementary therapist who used kinesiology to test for allergies.

As a bit of a sceptic I couldn't go so far as to recommend this but do know this lady told her to avoid citrus fruit and tomatoes and it cleared up instantly. It may be worth removing stuff from her diet(one at a time and in a sensible way) just to see what happens.

Emollients, etc are great but they are just treating the symptom, if you can remove an aggravating factor and settle it that way I would think it better.

Having said that I'm from an asthma/eczema/atopic family and we've never really pinned stuff down for us.

You're not supposed to cut out foods from a baby/toddlers diet without checking with your GP first are you? I'd go back and talk to them and push for more if it's bad. Who wants to see their child in pain?

My daughter's skin was raw and bleeding before we got stuck into creams etc and my GP advised against cutting out food even though she's 6 now. He skin is really clear, but it's whatever works for you, I wouldn't knock anything.

But GP all the way, don't take advice from a bunch of nutjobs on the internet like us.

freebards last line made me LOL

Sorry must clarify. I don't mean cut out foods as in anything major like fad diets. Was just thinking OP mentioned a sudden liking for satsumas that may have coincided with the worsening.

You could surely substitute another fruit for satsumas without any harm but agree with Freebards please don't try any faddy exclusion diets.

greedychops - killing off bacteria (which I agree is a very good thing to do for eczema) in a chlorinated bath is not the same thing as swimming in a pool though, with all that jumping in and out, half drying on the side before getting in again etc. And it is vital to use an emollient right after the disinfectant bath, which is not easy at all at the swimming pool.

I think it is very important to wash the skin very regularly to prevent irritants from building up, using a proper emollient bath, and then to smother the body in a really good emollient cream and let it dry in the air before getting dressed in clothing that lets the air circulate - loose cottons are best.

Thanks everyone for your great advice and comments.

She has a whole cupboard full of prescribed emollients and I find over the counter ones eg E45 etc make her eczema worse. She is very atopic and has allergies and asthma too.

Her hands have actually improved a lot since last week when I posted which is great, but I still have the swimming dilemma (have paid up front for a term's worth of lessons with her older brother). I think I may try one more session (with a pre layer of Hydromol as a barrier)and she how she fares. Also have steered clear of oranges and so am thinking that may well be a factor. May reintroduce in the summer when her skin may be better as a test.

Thanks everyone {smile}

Hi
My son had awful eczema as a baby/toddler. Mercifully seems to have largely grown out of it although still has various allergies.

I found out that he was allergic to lambswool - and there is lanolin in E45 cream which was prescribed for us in the early days.

Also, re swimming. I used to just put vaseline over him as a barrier to the water and seemed to help.

Also, switched to goats milk when he was 2.5 yrs old - possible coincidence with him growing out of it, but amazing improvement nonetheless.

Good luck.
Katie

Citrus fruit and tomoatoes are common triggers for a flare up.