Eczema in Pregnancy?

[e14mum]

Does anyone have any advice or experience on this? I'm now 19 weeks and it's been here since 5 weeks, mainly on the insides and backs of my legs, but arms getting worse too. Try to keep moisturised using an emollient ointment in the shower and Aveeno during the day, but it's so so itchy!! Oh, and use oatmeal baths too. It all helps at the time, but I'm at work 3 hours later having to sit on my hands!

I had a small patch of it on my wrist and used Eumovate for 2-3 days (it says 7 days max on leaflet).

I checked with the pharmasicst that this was ok and he looked it up - its not implicated in causing any problems during pregnancy, but that can mean the jury is out - so we agreed that as it was such a small area it was worth trying briefly to see if it got rid, and it did.

As your legs are a larger area of skin than just a patch on the wrist, I'd check with your GP first.

Thanks pigletmaker- as it's a BIG area, I am hesitant to use any steroids... but I will ask the gp again next time I see her.

hope you get it sorted e14.i sympathize.
we were not going to try for a baby this month,but we have taken the risk and so it has become a possibility that i could get pregnant.have got hand/finger ezcema that i was given betnovate for in dec and used that just a couple of times during my ovulation,just on a couple of fingers.i wonder if any MN's,have used moderately potenet steroid ointment around conception,or pregnancy and been told it's ok.i intend to stop now as it seems under control,just in case,but i worry if it 'stays in your body' and would affect an embryo at all(if there was one?!).I suppose if it flares again,i will have to go and speak to doctor.
good luck
any info from anyone would be appreciated.not much advice on steroid creams on this topic.
thanks

hi, i sympathise with you so much, i am preg with baby no 4 and have had horrible eczma with the first three pregnancies, my skin was basically allergic to pregnancy with ds1 an ds2, i had it all over including my face

it wasnt so bad with ds3 and this time (i am almost 39wks) its not been too bad tho i have just had to take steroid medication to get rid of some really sore eczma on my hands and feet.

basically when pregnant i just moisturise, moisturise moisturise and on the really sore bits i use eumovate cream which my dermatologist has said is ok during pregnancy.

i also take piriton tablets as these help the itching a bit and they are deemed 'safe' in pregnancy ( i have taken them with each pregnancy)

i always try really hard not to take anything but sometimes that just isnt possible.

i would ask for an urgent referral to a dermatologist, they will be better placed to treat you and know which treatments are ok in pregnancy (it varies depending on the stage of pregnancy) most gps will just err on the side of caution, but a dermatologist should have or be able to find out which treatments are suitable for you during pregnancy.

good luck and i hope you get better soon, you may find as the weather gets warmer that your skin improves, cold weather and having the heating on etc tend to make eczma worse.
oh in response to the last question i have used steroids around the time of comception and all my boys are fine not recomended but the theory is that you could possibly absorb the steroid cream in through your skin to your blood stream and then through the placenta to the baby, the likelyhood of you absorbing enough to damage a baby is VERY VERY slim, but as always we err on the side of caution.

3mad boys-THANKYOU so much for your information.that has reassured me a lot.i was wondering how i would cope if i got pregnant and i got ezcema during pregnancy too.congratulations by the way,regarding your fourth.(take my hat off to you).how do you cope though with all that hand washing that's involved with childcare.?.my fingers keep going through patches of the same finger getting infected and am on Betnovate n ointment(that also has an antibiotic in it).i go to great lenghts to avoid wet/dirty hands-cotton gloves e.t.c.,and still it flares.i think mine's triggered by dustmite.has your ezcema ever got infected?.
my fingers are so fragile/vunerable,that i wonder if i could ever cope if i have a second child-what with all the muck that comes with kids.
any more info,especially about hand ezcema would be great!

i have used betnovate whilst pregnant for the eczma on my hands, yes it does get infected and i have had to take antibiotics and steroid tablets.

i have also had uv teatment which has helped, there are some forms of this you can have whilst pregnant and other forms that you cant.

its a bit of a minefield and basically there hasnt been any research done so as always drs like to err on the side of caution. However when you have eczma it you do sometimes just have to treat it.

with regards to the hand washing etc, i use ecover washing up liquid as that seems to be best for my hands, and i use the fragrance free wet wipes that tesco do, i cant use any baby products by johnsons etc as they make my eczma flare up.

mine is also triggered by dust mites so i do lots of hoovering and have mattress, duvet and pillow protectors, wash all towles and bedding at 60 degrees and put an extra rinse on the cycle etc.

even more reassuring.
thanks again 3madboys.
good luck with the birth!