dd (10) Severe eczema - refusing treatment - any advice?

[pinkorkid]

DD (10) has severe eczema, multiple allergies and, despite nasty flare-up, she is refusing to comply with having creams applied. It's taking at least an hour of tantrums to get any emollients on her and she refuses the fucibet steroid cream point blank as she insists it will sting even more than the emollients do. Also refuses to get in the bath/shower for the same reason. Have given calpol and anti-histamines in advance to no great effect. Tried withdrawing tv access and offering rewards for compliance but she is very stubborn. Sleep is also very disturbed and she was missing a lot of school last term.

Grateful for any advice if anyone has experienced similar behaviour with older dcs.

Is her eczema mainly itchy or raw?

If it's that she can't stop itching, try laying cool damp flannels from the fridge over her skin so she can get some comfort. Then, when she's calm or asleep (tonight) apply her cream.

What creams are you putting on her - aside from the fucibet? I use Fucibet but only when I have infected eczema; it is part steroid and part antibiotic. I have had chronic eczema ll my life and now I've stopped using emollients, it's almost cleared up. They were making it ten times worse and red and inflammed. Now, I just use vaseline to keep it moist and to control itching (works instantly to stop the itch) and it allows my skin to heal really quickly.

I use the fucibet when I need to heal infected eczema - I currently have an open bit on my finger from when I cleaned the bathroom with Cif and didn't wear gloves and a bad patch on my foot.

I honestly think that if it's stinging, then it's the emollients. Vaseline won't sting at all but will keep the skin supple. As soon as I get an itch, I smooth on a layer of vaseline and it quickly stops.

Hi vintageteacups, thanks for replying. Her eczema is mainly itchy extemely dry and beginning to crack in the lichenified patches on wrists and feet mainly. There are a few raw patches where she has scratched so much. The fucibet is as you say because when we last saw eczema nurse we suspected it was infected. This was based on her skin not responding to normal steroid creams minus the fucidic acid. However because she hasn't agreed to use the fucibet and only very infrequently the emollients it's getting worse not better. I know some emollients can include ingredients which can aggravate, but she has gone from appearing to tolerate current one - epaderm cream/ointment mix to now saying it stings. I don't know how much is down to general deterioration of her skin, to possible sensitisation to the epaderm or to her determination to control things by refusing any treatment. About a month ago she had a course of oral antibiotics plus fucibet plus doublebase emollient and skin improved dramatically but unfortunately this was followed by a week away on a school trip where she neglected her skin and it has been downhill ever since.

I will try vaseline tomorrow - if she lets me. Otherwise will make cautious attempt when she is asleep although slightly wary of this as she is a poor sleeper anyway and is likely to be furious if she wakes and catches me at it.

I became sensitised to all my emollient creams -I would be using them for months/years and then suddenly, it would feel as though someone was trying to burn me!

She needs to keep the skin in a soft state though - allowing it to dry out and then crack/become infected in a scratch/itch/infection cycle will make her skin weak and old looking.

I don't own shares in vaseline and I know I sound like a broken record but for me, and I have had eczema since birth and I'm now 33, I had dry/weepy/raw/bleeding/itchy/swollen skin on my feet/hands (mainly), face, inside my ears and arms all my life and vaseline is the only prevention for me.

I hope your dd listens to you and at 10, she's old enough to help herself and look after her skin. Perhaps you could let her read this thread?

my dp (34 life long excema sufferer) wont touch emollients anymore but swears by baby bottom butter waitrose

vintageteacups,
I told dd that a grown up on mumsnet who had always had eczema found vaseline helpful with the controlling the itching and she agreed to try it and to my absolute delight and amazement she agreed it did make her skin feel better. She has continued to scratch but not in as much of a frenzy as before. She also allowed me to apply the fucibet afterwards without protest. I can't thank you enough for your suggestion and I hope she continues to be as positive. I agree she is old enough to take responsibility for her own treatment - perhaps if it doesn't hurt so much she'll be more amenable to the idea.

Mspotatochip, thanks for your reply. I will hold onto your suggestion if we run into trouble with the vaseline. I'm glad your dp has found something that works well for him.

That's fab - so glad she listened to you and so glad she's feeling some relief. For when she's at school, she could pop a mini tub (not tin as they're so tricky to open) into her school bag and keep a huge tub at home - that's what I do.

Also - Tesco Nipple Cream works wonders for my hands when I want something a bit less greasy than vaseline. It's gorgeously soft and doesn't sting at all.

I had awful eczema as a child, from about 6 to 14. I dont; want to teach you to suck eggs, but have you thought of her diet?

Eventually my mum sought alternative help and we saw nutitionist privately, who specially in allergy diets (he was also a qualified GP and dematologist, so not an alternative hippy snake oil quack at all). It took 12 months or so to really find the diet that worked for me, but my skin cleared up completely after I stopped eating bread (other wheat was OK just to cut down a bit), and rich dairy, and increased intake of natural yoghurt. He was a big advocate of rye bread and salad for all too!

I am 40 now, and skin has been pretty good since then. I still can't eat rich dairy or chemically flavored yohurts though (the ones that are just nat yog + fruit and sugar are OK).

bike is right. Diet can have massive implications for eczema. The Eczema Society have information about GLA (Gamma Linolenic Acid), the fat that's missing in eczema sufferers.

If you increase the foods she eats containing this, it could well improve her skin and reducing the itching or you could ask about a supplement, making sure it's suitable for kids.

Hmm - have just checked their site and there doesn't seem to be anything on there now. Will fiind another link.

the second comment on here is interesting

It seems that there are varying degrees of info about whether GLA actually helps eczema and it's hard to find foods which contain it but you can get supplements or even evening primrose cream (have to check its use in kids though).

I don't know what is the current advice, but Iremember when I was young someone told me they used to wash kids with severe exema in porridge.
Now some companies produce beauty products using it - I am not surprised.

Has she tried to us almond oil?

Ooh - be really careful using porridge.

I tried having a bath with porridge oats in a pair of old tights etc and it left me raw and stinging. Casein and gluten (barley/wheat/OATS) allergy are very common is eczema sufferers.

I really rate this cream: Cicabio which soothes instantly, and heals very quickly.

You can buy Cicabio here

blimey - have you seen the shipping price??? Is there anywhere you can get it in the UK? was about to buy it and saw 11.99 for shipping?

Here?

Oh dear - massive postage charges there too (15.99!) - don't worry. I'll keep on using vaseline [smile)

Try to get some Cicabio if you can - I think it is fantastically good.

www.leguidesante.co.uk/1F07/purchase/cicabio-creme/

for Cicabio but couldn't find postage price

thank you all for your replies.
bikerunski, yes she was tested several years ago and came up with multiple food intolerances some in the anaphylactic range so we are cautious about what she eats although she ended up with a very limited diet, had to take calcium supplements. We had a period of remission for about a year when her eczema was much improved and we gradually reintroduced some of the foods we had eliminated as she seemed to be tolerating them and very much resented the restrictions. As it has all flared up again since last december, we're not sure if we should try to introduce restrictions again. I'm very loathe to introduce anything else to potentially have arguments about without being sure of the benefits, especially as her chosen diet is not very balanced anyway - not keen on either meat or vegetables. If we then cut out all her allergens: dairy, soya, maize, wheat, nuts, orange, tomato there's not a great deal left to eat. When she was first tested she was reasonably compliant because of the novelty and the hope that it would have a positive impact on her skin. In fact we didn't see any noticeable improvement during the couple of years she was on the very restricted diet so I think the most we could say is that diet wasn't the only or main factor involved. Having said all that I'd be ineterested to know more about the impact of low levels of particular fatty acids etc so I will look into that more.

Kayah/vintage thanks for comments re oatmeal - I think we haven't tried the oatmeal in bath/aveeno products since she was quite little - I think because of her wheat/maize reactions doctors were cautious re using it but they don't always go together so I will bear that in mind to try.

bonsoir, thanks for recommendation re cicabio. A healing cream sounds good.