Quick eczema soothers...

[suzi2]

I can't believe I'm asking this as I've had fairly bad eczema all my life... but I'm quite used to mine so it doesn't bother me much...

anyhow, DS, 25wks, has had a very bad flare up. We're not sure of the cause. His chest and back look like he's had a heat rash and it's now swollen, dry and sunburned looking. His face/scalp isn't much better and he's got them bleeding from scratching. I've given up on the steroids as they aren't helping much. Diprobase, doublebase, cetraben are really stinging him as his skin goes bright red and he screams when they're put on. For now I'm using pure Shea butter as it's the only thing he doesn't cry with. And we're using piriton from the docs to help with the itch.

Any suggestions for ways to soothe it for him would be greatly appreciated. I cry just looking at him Also, we're wet wrapping every night but find we need his room much warmer or he wakes with the cold (and wants a cuddle!). But I think the cetral heating isn't helping. Any tips to keep him cool with wet wraps but not cold?

Can you put a wet cloth over the radiator to keep the air moist as well as warm - dry heat always makes my excema worse. Also, we were prescribed Oilatum for our dd's excema - I use it as well when mine is bad, but we use it routinely for dd, every night in her bath. I also use it for washing her instead of using babywipes - a few drops in a little squirty bottle of water. We use washable nappies anyway, so it is easy to use washable wipes. What have you been using in his bath? Before dd's excema started to flare up (about 3 months old) we had started to use a little drop of unperfumed baby bath in her bath sometimes and hadn't had a problem, but then the excema flared up after a bout of thrush and so we stopped. Today I brought her into the bath with me without thinking. I didn't have any bubbles but I had washed my hair and rinsed it in the bathwater. Dd seemed to be fine at the time but when I was getting her undressed tonight I noticed her excema has flared up nastily . We usually do the bath, then use diprobase thickly and put her vest & babygrow on top and that is OK to keep it down, but if it flares up we do use hydrocortisone and that usually clears it within one or two applications.
I hope someone may be able to give you some more tips - and that your little one settles quickly.

Tilly's skin is also terrible at the mo (weather?) and she has been on piriton at night for months now. Does he sleep in a sleeping bag as we find this best for her?
We have started using T-gel shampoo and even with only a few washes a week her scalp is much better.
She is a bit older than your son but she really loves being tickled (stroked) gently as I think that this relieves the itching a bit.
Sorry not much help but sending sympathy....

I feel for you - it is so hard to see your little one suffering with eczema especially when you know how horrible it feels yourself!
I found that an emollient bath oil additive like Balneum was really helpful and soothing for DD when she had some really bad flare ups when she was a baby. My GP at the time had a specialist interest in paediatric dermatology and prescribed a strong steroid cream (Elocon), explaining that current thinking is that it is better to use a stong cream once or twice than a milder cream for weeks and weeks. The strong steroid combats the flare up quickly (1 or 2 applications only) and enables you to get their skin back into good condition, and then us emollients etc. to maintain it. I think he said that the skin 'forgets' what normal is like if it is not brought into control so the longer you can maintain it between flare ups, the better. This advice really worked for us and DD (now 3)is now very rarely bothered by eczema at all as long as we are careful with soap products and act quickly to treat any minor flare up.

You probably already know this - but if the skin is broken, it might be a good idea to back to the GP and make sure the eczema is not infected.

Hope you get some good suggestions to help soothe your DS.

an oatmeal bath is supposed to be very soothing - put some inside a muslin cloth and let the water run through it,

I've put a wet terry over the radiator now. He used to get bathed in balneum or diprobath but neither really helped. So we went back to plain water and use some dermol to wash him down with. He sleeps in a sleeping bag which helps keep him cosy.

Might try the oatmeal thing tomorrow. He has a cough too so is especially unsettled at the moment.

JennyWren - interesting to hear the flareup happened after thrush. DS is constantly getting oral/stomach thrush and I wonder if it triggers his skin.

how do u know if your child has stomach thrush? what are the symptoms?

He had oral thrush (white patches in mouth that can't be rubbed off) and also had a rash around his bum - a sign that the thrush was in his tummy too.

Thanks for all the replies yesterday. We've gone back to the Balneum to see if that helps. The Shea butter seems to be doing a fairly decent job too. Though DS saw the doctor (again!) today as he has an awful cough and the doc thinks that he has a virus which is also giving him an underlying rash which isn't helping.

well looks like we are in the same boat because me and my son have eczmea and yesterday asked on here if anyone had any tips. I thought that the weather might have alot todo with the way our skin is at the mo. What is dry/wet wrapping because i have never heard of it even though i've had eczmea all my life?????

DD (now 5) but has always suffered with excema and the only thing i have found which doesnt irritate her is Aveeno moisturiser and also aveeno bath powder (it is ground oatmeal and very soothing)
Put lots of bowls of water in his bedroom and maybe think about getting a humidifier, i would try to think about letting him sleep in a 100% pure cotton sleeping bag and leaving the heating off tbh.
Also try this for night wear/gloves etc.
My dd is now with a consultant dermatologist who explained that a mild steroid to treat flare ups is the way to treat excema, he said GP's were reknowned for condeming (sp?) them but this caused more harm than good.

Also - you can get pure aloe vera gel from health shops which is soothing, although it feels tight and tingly at first which is strange to babies and children.
Good luck xx

This is a useful document as a source of info Yorkshire Eczema Guidelines

On topical steroids it states:
The weakest effective steroid, should be used at any time. However, a short period of use of potent steroids may abort the development of a severe episode of eczema and indeed for children with moderately severe eczema, can be valuable. Eczema often becomes progressively worse in a "vicious cycle" way, with the cycle being that of itch/scratch/itch and judicious use of potent steroids in conjunction with emollients may abort this. The consensus view is therefore that the intermittent application of potent steroids, perhaps for a few days to each body site, every few weeks is effective and indeed essential, in patients with severe eczema.

Does anyone know what they mean by a strong steroid? Hydrocortisone 1%? Eumovate? Or even Betnovate?

tyakit - this is what my dermatologist said. my GP had prescribed luke a 2% steriod called fucibet. i was told to stop using it ASAP by my eczema nurse, but the dermatologist said its fine to use especially on the really bad patches of eczema.
suzi - i think 2% steroids are classed as potent, there is even a 5% steriod i think.
i think eumovate is very mild.

Fucibet is a steroid and antibiotic together.
They should only be used short term because of cross infection etc.

This link classifies some (but not all) topical steroids into potency groups.
steroid potencies

omega fish oils are supposed to be very good for excema, heal from the inside out. evening primrose is supposed to be good also, but man in the health shop said fish oil is better. boots do one suitable from 6 months

Agree that Aveeno is a good cream - you can get on prescription but comes in tiny tubes so ask for five at a time and then keep one in change bag, kitchen etc.
I have expensive PJs from Excemaclothing but also find tights under PJs work well- try for boys too who will know???
Tilly is veggie so we use fish oil alternative in her cereal and yoghurt....

i have bought aveeno from here. . the service was quick. I was going to ask for it on prescription as dd is running out of it but if you just get little tubes of it, then I will just order more.

we've tried Aveeno too - Ds is allergic to it as am I. His skin is looking 10 times better today. It seems he's had a viral rash which has been making it worse. I'm still using shea butter on it which is really helping and soothing I think. He's still very itchy and it's a struggle to get him to take the piriton. But I'm distracting him loads which helps.

Might try some tights on him - good tip!

Don't make him wear girly tights though!
Kiki - the aveeno on prescription is the 100ml tubes so worth getting in multiples....

Hi,
My daughter has had eczema since she was a baby. She is now 10.
All I can say is that diet does help. Try pure foods and foods without colourings. I am certain that this helped her (we were part of an article a couple of years back for the Daily Mail).

Also: I have found that THE BODY SHOPS HEMP CREAM has been a saviour for sore skin. It goes on without any irritation.

There is also a Swiss formula of Tea Tree Cream (cannot for the life of me think of the name today). This has also proved to be better than any steriod cream.

Years of steriod creams have caused thinning/fading of her skin.

Hope this helps.

Ah someone ealse using Hemp Cream! We tried it because someone had lots free and I think it helps but had not heard of anyone using it. Will try it a bit more often now...

Avid fan of Hemp cream here too.