Cannot cope with DD's eczema any more...

[Schulte]

...is there a support group somewhere? A hotline where I can cry down the phone? Or can you lovely people cheer me up a bit?

WE've had many visits to dermatology depratment in hospital.

We were always told steroid first. Wait before applying moisturiser. REgular bathing suggested (and worked for us), wet wraps helped enormously too although obv tie consuming and fiddly. Stronger steroids prescribed. Shown how much to apply etc.

yes yes to stronger steroid to sort it rather than longer on weaker steroid.

You need to try all recommended emollients until you find the one that owrks for your child. There's not much point going on others' recommendations as it seems to be such an individual thing

Okay two more questions if I may...

Eumovate on hand/fingers? Is that safe?

Eumovate on slightly broken skin - i.e. where she's really scratched....?

Yes, it's trial and error. Definitely

Aloe Vera could be an answer. I've heard lots of good reports about it. Look for a good aloe vera cream - forever living products is a direct selling franchise that does a really good one - there's probably a local outlet near you - you can google them. Also, as none of the allopathic stuff seems to be helping, maybe you should consult a homeopath / holistic therapist. I have a friend who's daughter has been helped hugely and she had awful eczema from very early babyhood. Also, check out this link full of helpful suggestions: www.foresight-preconception.org.uk/solutions/eczema.aspx. If you can get DLA or any other applicable benefit, really go for it as that will help pay for alternatives.

Listen to the dermatologist first. They are so much better than GPs. Then piss about with homeopaths if you want to.

Drinking aloe vera juice is also very helpful for all sorts of ailments too. Diet/nutrition will have a huge supportive impact.

I second the rec to use Surcare - me and mine have always had eczema and been allergic to other non-bios like Fairy and especially Persil. Surcare is fine - always an extra rinse and never and fabric conditioner. Always 100% cotton clothes and not too many layers.

Re hydrocortisone - DD1's consultant said better to use a stronger one to get it cleared up, then enable a few days rest, rahter than a weaker one all the time with no break. Also to use until the redness has all gone (so in your case, it might be a near-constant thing).

And never to use at the same time as another cream, as it dilutes it. Leave an hour or so for it to sink in, then put the emollient on.

Another thing to consider if the general moisturisers aren't helping - maybe your daughter is allergic to parabens or petrochemicals? These are found in most creams. DD1 couldn't tolerate any of the creams the GP prescribed when she was a baby. We found Dermasalve baby cream eg here helps as a general moistursier applied 3-4 times a day - absolutely no irritants in that (can be GP prescribed as its darn expensive). It might be worth trying, seeing if the eczema reduces, then you can gradually re-introduce other creams to try to see what might be the irritant/allergen in the other creams.

I would also second what others have said about diet. It is very common for the eczema to be a symptom of a food intolerance/delayed allergy. Its difficult to work through what this might be yourself, but if none of the washing powder/cream recs help, then this really is the only avenue you can go down.

I am not sure we're seeing an actual dermatologist in July - the referral letter only says 'paediatric clinic'.

Diet is controversial too. The benefits of changing diet are debatable. Do not expect a clear-cut solution. It's unlikely you will find one.

You need a dermatology referral, first and foremost.

My local hospital's dermatology department ran a children's clinic. Try to find out what happens near you.

I guess going to this clinic is the first step and then I may be referred on from there? I still don't understand how the NHS works

Yes... this diet thing.... lots of people have said to me, cut out dairy, or cut out wheat, but I am not convinced and it's a lot of hassle to add to an already difficult situation.

Pure potions cream - my DS has used [though his excema is not serious]. Have you thought about asllergy testing as well?

try www.eczema.org/

good luck - it is so hard!

Eczema in our family isn't diet relatedm for what it's worth.

Wet wrapping is briilliant.

also many people actually allergic to hydrocortisone ... i is there a chance it is making it worse?

Okay must be off to bed, thanks everyone for your help and advice, will be checking again tomorrow.

Hang back on mucking about with diet until you;ve spoken to the experts.

During a desperate phase two years ago, a herbalist made me feel incredibly guilty so we cut out all dairy for 6 weeks. And I was very very thorough. No difference.

Ds2 was terribly allergic to both persil and oilatum. Every child is different.
I found unguentum to be very good for him.

This will sound really strange, but dd's eczema cleared up when I took her swimming in the local pool- again, it just illustrated the point that different things work for different children. I experimented with a few sterilizing tablets in the bath water and it worked!! I have no idea why. I used aqueous cream for washing and moisturising with dd and that helped.

Are you sure the eczema isn't infected? Dd had a really bad bout of it, and when I took her to the GP he put her on antibiotics and it cleared p straight away. It hadn't really looked infected to me, just worse than usual.

Mine have both outgrown their eczema to a large extent. Dd still gets it on her face when she is tired or stressed .

Have you sewn socks onto the arms of your dd's pyjamas to stop her scratching at night?

I found this useful about applying creams. With DS2's terrible patches on the backs of his knees we would apply aveeno to prime the skin, then hydrocotisone.

"Using emollients and topical steroids together

Most people with eczema will also be prescribed a topical steroid (steroid creams and ointments) to use when eczema flares up. Topical steroids are very different to emollients, and should be used and applied in a different way. See separate leaflet called 'Topical Steroids for Eczema' for more details. When using the two treatments, apply the emollient first. Wait 10-15 minutes after applying an emollient before applying a topical corticosteroid. That is, the emollient should be allowed to absorb before a topical steroid is applied (the skin should be moist or slightly tacky, but not slippery, when applying the steroid)."

DS1 had a nasty patch on his cheek and Forever Living Aloe Vera and Propolis cream was amazing. DS2 claims it stings, but DS1 never complained.

Poor you, it's horrible. You have my sympathies. I had bad eczema when I was little and still remember the torment of scratching now. And my 7mo ds has it now too.

For me, the absolute best thing we discovered was wet wrapping. It stopped the scratching at night and my skin felt cool and moisturised. At the time I used bandages called viscopaste - no idea if they're still available or recommended now, but they were a complete saviour.

For ds, we've managed to clear it up so far with salt water (boiled water and pure sea salt) and scratchsleeves - both suggestions from mumsnetters incidentally. Any emollients we tried just made it worse. And, like you, cortisone would make it go away and the minute we'd stop, it would re-appear.

Initially, we used salt water just once to prevent infection because he had a really weepy patch. But it had such an immediate effect that we used it again. And with one application a day, the eczema cleared within about a week.

Your dd sounds exactly like my dd. For months she had eczema all over her body. I couldn't get rid of it despite lots of moisturiser, 1% hydrocortisone and eumavate. It would flare up for no obvious reason and was impossible to keep under control.

I recently went back to see a new GP who recommended using betnovate. There are different strengths and I think we got the least strong, but it was still more potent than eumavate. I applied it day and night for 5 days. For the first time in probably over a year my dd had clear skin. I was then able to keep the eczema pretty much under control by using mainly moisturiser. The GP said that the real danger with steroids comes when you use them for long periods of time. It is apparently completely fine, and indeed preferable, to use stronger steroids for short bursts. I recently read somewhere (maybe on MN?) that it is important to continue to apply steroid cream for a few days after it looks like the eczema has cleared up as this allows time for the skin to completely heal. The danger of stopping too soon is, I guess, that it will come back straight away.

It has also helped that we recently identified a trigger for my dd's eczema (tomatoes). However, as others have said, it can be hard to know for sure what is setting things off. (For us, an obvious allergic reaction to tomatoes resulted in a massive flare up.) A dermatologist may be able to help you further.

Hi, Salcura worked for my dd, I used the oil in the bath and the Zeoderm cream on her bad patches. Hers wasn't very bad, but still worrying to me, obviously. She has great skin now, just gets a little patch on her neck when she's coming down with something. Good luck

I totally understand how upsetting it is. We have seen an eczema specialist this week and she has totally changed our emollient/steroid regime and it seems to make sense so hopefully you will get some good advice on that from your specialst. She basically said you are much better using the stronger stuff for longer rather than the weaker stuff all the time. You need to carry on with the steroid cream until it is all gone and then a few days after that, then as soon as it appears again catch it early with the steroid cream again. We are nw using eumovate every day as ds is getting over a flare up.

I stopped using detergents and now wash all clothes and beding in liquid soap flakes and soda crystals (available at most supermarkets). There is a useful site called itchybaby.co.uk that tells you how to use different washing techniques. My ds borrowed his cousin's sleeping bag the other day and you could see where it had touched his skin.

I hope you get some good suggestions from the specialist