Is eczema always itchy?

[celandine]

DS, 9 months, was diagnosed with eczema when he was 6 months old, and also papular dermatitis later. The thing is, he's never scratched it and it's never seemed to bother him at all. Can it still be eczema if it doesn't itch?

His skin is mostly covered in it: face, ears, neck (VERY dry), arms, torso, legs, and looks very red and feels so dry, often crusting overround his ears and neck. It's just dry skin with a generally spotty look to it. We had a brief respite with Kamillosan cream which I thought was the cure but it hasn't worked recently, and aqueous cream is, IME, useless. I'm very grateful that it doesn't bother him but it doesn't diminish the way it disfigures his lovely looks and it's obviously something!

Whay d'you reckon? (I am going to see the HV again soon but wanted to know if anyone else has non-itchy eczema experience...)

My ds doesn't scratch his unless it's really bad or there is a rapid and large change in temperature (such as after swimming for instance).

I use a muslin with a handful of porridge oats in and run the bathwater over it and then leave it is the bath and ooze the gooey white stuff over his dry bits. It's lovely and very cheap. If you decide you don't like it you can always eat the leftovers.

Also flax seed oil (1 tbs)in food (needs to be cold food or goes rancid). This is more expensive per day but if I miss 1 day his eczema gets noticably worse. EFAs also supposed to be good for the brain so I think of it as a 2 for the price of 1.

I get Dr to prescribe cetamagogol cream with 10% glycerine and 1% lpc (coal tar). You don't really need the coal tar unless there is an itch, but NZ has a stupid system and its 5 times the price if they miss it out! Apply any cream to wet post bath skin because it works better by trapping the moisture in.

Some people swear by as few baths as possible, I am the opposite, the wetter the better. Another example of how eczema is a pain because what works for one person doesn't always work for another.

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My DS doesn't itch his spots on his body or his face, but his fingers are the worst and he puts them in his mouth and rubs them on his chest when he is tired. We use Elocon on his spots (once per day) and then vaseline/parrafin over his whole body (twice a day) and we only bath once a week with olive oil. We haven't found what works on his fingers yet.

Thanks for the replies and advice. We went to the hv yesterday and she said it was definitely eczema and that it sometimes only itches when it's hot. She also said he really ought to see a doctor and to ask for a referral to a skin specialist. We've got an appointment for this afternoon. I guess he'll prescribe steroid cream, which i really wanted to avoid, but it's so bad I can't cling to my principles on this one.

Toodlerbob, you're so right about it being a pain cos what works for one won't work for another. I've been researching the internet for suggestions and there's so many different things it's hard to know what to start. I think the fatty acids are a good idea. Also, I make my own live yogurt and he has this everyday so that covers the probiotics. I bath him every other day to get a happy medium cos I don't think it makes any difference to his skin really. I also wash him down with oilatum each morning to get rid of any 'crusty bits' which have developed overnight.

I shan't give up until I find a solution!

celandine,

my little ds2 had 'wet' eczema, behind his knees, and inside his elbows. its called wet because it is caused by sweating. I treated it with pure Aloe Vera Gelly and it dissappeared completely and never came back!!! before aloe, i had tried the porridge oats in the bath, and the Aveeno cream. oilatum and aquous cream were prescribed by GP but they were completely useless to be honest. anyway, treating it with aloe vera gelly took a few months (3-4) but persistence paid off. I recomment that you try it, you have nothing to loose, as it will not do any harm (like the cortizone creams!!) but please go for the best one, I am happy to tell you the make I used.

hope this helps.

Also, they say some skin conditions like eczema are the symptoms of immune system imbalance. so to treat eczema, you need to target the immune system. i.e. balance it. again Aleo Vera Gel can be taken internally,as a drink, it works wanders on the immune system.

Thanks TurkishDelight, his eczema is actually 90% improved now as we stopped the aqueous cream and he's on Diprobase instead, and this happened within 2 days.

However, I shall still take a look into Aloe Vera gel as I too believe you should try to heal from the inside rather than just cure the symptoms.

ezcema isnt always itchy. have hardly ever seen dd2 scratch really, tho i reakon she having an odd scratch at night.

Hi all

I am new to this site, so hope you don't mind loads of questions, loads of gripes and moans and the need for lots of advice (hopefully I'll be able to return the favour). My dd is 3 and has what I would call pretty bad eczema (after 2 years of trying, only now getting GP to refer her to a Dermatologist). It's got to the stage now that her body is almost constantly covered in spots and rashes so that when she gets chicken pox or similar I think I will miss it. Night times are a nightmare, for the past 7 weeks (ever since trying tacrolimus) she has been scratching furiously for hours. I wondered if anyone had used aloe vera gel successfully? Yesterday I applied this as she doesn't like creams I think they are too cold for her, she seems to like gel based ones. A couple of times it seemed to soothe then others after applying she would scream. I don't know if it's cause it's nipping or she's just that used to crying when getting cream on. How does aloe gel work? I've heard you can't apply anything else while using it, is this true? Alos has anyone had success with taking the aloe gel as a drink in toddlers? Advice would be appreciated.
Thanks in advance
Tracey

i'm glad your dd has finally been referred.

Have you tried the mitten sleepsuits at all? i have found them to be great, and my dd's sleep better when wearing them. they cant scratch in them, so have to come to me during the night to help stop the itch.
www.eczemaclothing.com/product.cfm?page=sleepsuits

Hi there

Yes she has tried the sleepsuits from the same company. For the first week I found them excellent, however now she pulls her arm out one side so she can scratch. She also sleeps with a rabbit that has a ribbon she strokes, because of the mits she can't do this so has succeeded in excaping. I've actually just ordered another two from there, it's just the tears and tantrums we have to go through to make her wear them.
Tracye

solveitch, welcome to MN . I'm concerned that your dd is on tacrolimus without having seen a specialist. The side effects of tacrolimus can be itching, burning and tingling and increased sensitivity to heat and cold, so it sounds as though the cream is making her worse. You really should have seen some effect after 7 weeks, and you should be reducing the dose by now, so I suggest you get your dd back to your GP and see if you can push for an urgent appointment with the dermatologist.

My dd had mild eczema for a while, and it has cleared up, so I can't offer any experience to help, but I do have access to the BNF, a book about the various drugs that GPs can prescribe, which is where I got the info.

HTH

yes my dd escaped from them when she was about 2yrs old and skinny. she used to climb thro the neck holes. now she is broader she cant do it as much. have you tried wet wrapping?

tacrolimus can work well for many people, my dd didnt fit crtieria to try it when it came out, so have never tried it. might be worth pushing for the urgent appt. phone the hospital and ask for any cancellations that may come up.

Hi

The GP that I had been seeing also worked one day a week in the Dermatology dept. In our practice each DR has a speciality and this is his - although I didn't think he was all that informative. When given the tacrolimus I wasn't advised of the side effects and as soon as I read them, I phoned him up to discuss. He told me burnign and itching was a side effect but to go with it. basically I don't really like the way she has been handled throughout it all so am looking for advce through groups like these who have had people they know affected rather than the DR who hasn't got much time and not got a loved one in their family suffering from it too.

Sorry I'm on a rant here. I've also been asking for tubifast garments and he told me thaey can only be prescribed by a Dermatologist but still wouldn't refer me. Asked about wet wrapping and was told I'd have to be shown how to do it by a dermatology nurse. at this time he still wasn't for refering so asked if someone could even show me but no joy. Seems they don't think it's bad enough, but they're not the ones suffering night after night are they?

By the ay I did get a pharmacist to order the tubifast garments and dd created hell when having to put them on. I don't know if therse helped either. Could the snugness of them have created more itch?

Thanks
Tracey

Hi, just wondering if there are any new answers to this as my GP thinks DS may have eczema, and he has all the symptoms, except the itch.

Could it still be eczema without an itch??

Hiya ..i have eczema on the top of my feet and my elbows , it doesnt itch and has never been sore ! do you think i have been given the wrong diagnoses ? its pink patches a little raised not dry but i moisterise every day so have never see it dry ??
Thanks..

Hi its new again im new to this site and think its great that we can talk to others who are going through the same thing.... and really feel sad for those of you whos kiddies have got eczema ..im 28 and hate the way it looks ! i have had two docters from different surgeries tell me it eczema , but im not totally convinced !! any one have it with no itching or soreness ?? thanks zoe

sorry what does dd and ds mean ??

hi my little one is 15 months and for the past 1 and half months she had a red rash near her groin and bottom. at first they treated her as though it were a fungal infection but since none of the creams worked i was referred to a dermatologist and he said its a type of eczema. since recently i noticed near her elbows and knee caps patches of goosebump like rash its not red but just a bit spotty but feels like goosebumps. i was told to stop using creams and soaps and just use aqueous soap cream and this medicated shampoo. i have only been using the soap for the past two days but im willing to try something more natural can u pls let me know wht brand the aloe vera gelly is, i hope it would atleast reduce the appearance of it. my dermatologist said it seems to be caused by sweat so to make sure to keep her covered up to her neck in water for 20 mins during her daily bath because apparantely that is supposed to help.

Hi
Mumsfromasia: we tried brand aloevera products with my one year old son, he has eczema.Aloevera products weren't good for us. I see when my son eat some food, the eczma coming out,and my sepcial doctor said to me, eczema sign his immunsystem is a bit waekly. When I see ekcema is coming out, I am starting to use some probiotic and vitamins. Especially fluently Vitamin-c. I tried a whale of creams and special shapoons without any success. The best porducts were the quite simlpy bathing cream for babies, which I bought in the pharmacy.
And the best thing was the pure extra virgin oliven oil. I know it's amazing, but true. Every evening after bathing I use it to his body. If I see eczema I embalm that part of his body with oliven oil more times a day! But that things need about one weak. I hope I can help a little!

no eczema doesn't always itch, sometimes the skin just is very dry. my skin (hands) only itches if it starts to crack.