To ask for help for poor SIL and her baby with Eczema? Desperate SIL...

[MrsWinnibago]

I know it's not done to post here just because it's busy but poor sil and her 6 month old. He's got really bad eczema and she's so miserable :(

He won't stop crying generally unless he's on her she says....so all day long and all night (she is single) he is on her. He's breastfed and eats little tiny meals lately too.

She's seen specialists (the're in Oz) and been told he's allergic to Salicylates which apparently appear in most fruits and veg!

His little face is all red on one side and sore and itchy and though it;s got a bit better lately with some cream, she says it's now spread all over his body.

What if anything can she do? I can't offer to help as she's on the other side of the world!

[pebblestack]

My DD and the babies of several people I know have had their eczema completely turned around by La Roche Posay Lipikar balm slathered on as often as necessary. And bath oil. It's brilliant - worked like magic, no drugs needed.

[AugustAngst]

We have serious eczema in the family and what works well is your preferred emollient alongside old-fashioned bandaging - difficult with the face admittedly. But anywhere and anytime it's possible, slather the emollient all over the skin, without fully rubbing in, then bandage with cotton crepe bandages (but be careful as some bandages contain wool).

[CerealMom]

If not already - referral for allergy testing.

Could be anything:
Clothing dyes
Food stuffs
Ingredients in toiletries
Ingredients in medication
Etc..

[tobiasfunke]

DS had eczema. We found the best thing was to use hydrocortisone to clear it up first then we used Aveeno oil in the bath and the aveeno cream (not the daily moisturising one) after that and in the morning.
It always seemd to flare up if he was ill. It disappeared by the time he was 2.5. Different creams work for different kids so it's best to keep trying until you find one that works.

[Goldmandra]

There are lots of recommendations of emollients on here and it's a case of trial and error until you find the right one.

Steroids like Hydrocortisone and Eumovate do work but used long time can cause permanent skin thinning so they should only.

The best way to treat is firstly to consider whether any areas that are red and weepy are infected. If that is the case she will need an antibiotic cream combined with a steroid to clear it up.

She must avoid all bubbles and soap. Plain water is best for washing her baby's skin. You can add emollients like Oilatum but AFAIK the jury is still out over whether they help. Although water does still have a drying effect, it can be important to remove sweat, saliva, tears, urine, etc because these can be triggers.

Avoiding perfumes in washing powders can help and extra rinsing when washing clothes is a good idea.

Also keeping the baby cool will help and prevent inflammation due to sweating.

Eczema hurts as well as itches so some pain relief may give her some respite too or some antihistamines to reduce the itching might help if she's strggling to sleep.

[BarbarianMum]

OP id bet my bottom dollar that an allergy of some kind is behind this. Please encourage your sil to get an appointment with a paediatric allergy specialist. So much treatment for ezcema in the UK deals with treating the symptoms rather than the cause

[TreadSoftlyOnMyDreams]

Scratchsleeves were a lifesaver. I thoroughly recommend them. Brill for chickenpox too.

[canyou]

poor Mum
Ask her if they have swabbed for infection my DS was so red and raw and in the end the skin wounds had low grade infection We could not use anti biotics because they cause flare ups but Milton baths every night with loads of cream did heal the skin

[duckyneedsaclean]

When my ds was very little his eczema was awful, gp sent us to a&e. Anyway they prescribed 0.5% hydrocortisone cream.

It's like magic for when he had a bad flare up. Then oilatum several times a day. In fact he hasn't had anything since her was 1.

[MrsWinnibago]

RInky they have two very beloved dogs Even if he WAS allergic my FIL wouldn't get rid. SIL would need to move out I think...she's living at FILs.

Canyou he was infected but that's cleared up now but as she says, his face where the infection was is better but the exzema has moved to his body...all over it.

[MrsWinnibago]

Barbarianyes it is an allergy...he's been tested and it's Salicylates apparently.

[neversaydie]

DS had mild but persistent eczema, which was probably stress induced, exacerbated by citrus. Emollients usually made it worse, although hydrocortisone cream would clear it temporarily. (Apparently he was also intolerant of lanolin.) Aveeno didn't elicit hysterical crying, but didn't help much either.

Then we had a few visits to the beach, and he swam. The eczema cleared up for a while. We went back - it cleared again. I now keep sea salt for bathing in stock. If you google it, we are not the only ones to have seen a miracle cure after a visit to the seaside. The salt probably deals with any persistent infection. I would not try it with a child with weeping or bleeding sores, but if you can get a temporary healing with hydrocortisone, I would give it a go.

[blanklook]

Another vote for real oats in a muslin / stocking in the bath. Not aveeno, it flared my dd's skin all over.

Be careful of any emollients made with petroleum jelly, likewise check all ingredients of commonly recommended creams like E45, another no-no for dd.

Food grade Himalayan salt (the pink one) is one of the best things we've found as a bath additive alongside the oats. Virgin coconut oil is a good emollient, Sweet Almond oil (not for nut allergies) also absorbs well, ex.v. olive tends to lay on the surface.

I make our own lip balms and salves with ex virgin olive oil, beeswax and a couple of vitamin E capsules. Also make calendula infused oil and use a strong chamomile tea with a touch of bicarb as a medicinal wash, as over the years we've found that home-made with natural products is far more effective than manufactured ones.

One thing I'd like to mention is when bandaging or covering an area treated with hydrocortisone, you are effectively increasing the hydrocortisone's strength so please seek a medical opinion before doing so. There's a warning on the leaflet of some creams stating this but not many people read those when they are desperate to help a little one who is distraught with the intense itching that defines eczema.

If possible, do a patch-test with anything you apply. I know it's time-consuming but it is worth doing.

[movingtoourwillow]

Hey OP, I really sympathise as I've suffered from eczema on and off all my life, and second the sea salt remedy, and this this stuff is amazing!

eczemarelief.com.au/

[CoolCat2014]

One thing that I found really helped me was evening primrose oil, I think you're meant to take it, but I used to rub it on the eczema and found it really soothing. Also avoiding biological washing powder, and having the washing machine only do non bio!

[JsOtherHalf]

I can recommend dermasilk. Ds still sleeps in the pyjamas, even at 7, and doesn't scratch in his sleep.

[bronya]

Could she go on an exclusion diet? Then gradually re-introduce foods? They don't test for everything (missed the main contributor for me when I was a child - cotton!). If nothing else it would give his skin a little time to heal.

[Backofbourke]

I don't have much experience with severe eczema but I have experience of salicylate intolerance. Assuming she has been given the correct diagnosis If your SIL wants to continue breast feeding she needs to cut out the salicylate in her diet so she is not passing traces to the baby. You don't say where in Australia your SIL is . If she is in Sydney tell her to ask GP for a referral to Royal Prince Alfred Hospital allergy clinic which is wonderful though very busy. If not she should look at their website and get some info www.sswahs.nsw.gov.au/rpa/allergy/ she might find following the simplified elimination diet helps. Their friendly food cook book and the elimination diet hand book are really helpful and saved my sanity in the early days after my DC were diagnosed with salicylate intolerance. Some foods that do not contain salicylate include
-banana
-pear (pealed or tinned in syrup NOT juice)
-golden delicious apples pealed
-green beans
-White beans like canneli beans or butter beans
-potato thickly pealed
-swede
-leeks
-Garlic
-White rice, a good brand in Australia is Calrose rice. Do not eat Basmati or Jasmine rice as they are high.
I have probably forgotten some but this is a basic list.
It is also in most processed foods and oils. The best veg oil to use is rice bran oil which is widely available in Australia . The allergy clinic at RPA give an exhaustive list in their handbook.
Also vitamins and medicines contain salicylate .Amcal one a day is the only suitable multivitamin . She should never give her child nurofen or take it or any other NSAID herself whilst breast feeding. She should also avoid paracetamol suspensions and use suppositories or crushed tablets in rice syrup for pain ,though you need to be confident to work out the dose for the baby. Never use Bonjela or similar for teething pain (a frozen banana or teething ring might help) and when her child needs toothpaste the amcal Alfree is the best.
I found the salicylate free diet a bit daunting at first but quickly got into the swing of things. It really does mean being prepared and bringing food every where. We ate lots of plain rice cakes with ricotta as this was my DC favourite snack! We also cooked everything from scratch which is hard work at first but I learned to batch Cook and freeze. Woolworth in Australia has a good range of allergy friendly foods and I also found Aldi to be good as their tinned foods didn't have too many
PM me if you want any more info.

[Backofbourke]

Sorry typo Aldi is good as their tinned food didn't have too many additives.
A close friend who has a strong family history of eczema Also swears by La Roche Possay Lipikar cream and oil. Her Dd was in agony till her Dermatologist recommend this. Not sure if it is available in Aus but it is sometimes on 3 for 2 at boots so might be worth sending her some.

[ipsofacto73]

cetraben. its over counter recommended by great ormond st dermatologist for dd. life changing. my friend's son had had severe ecesma for five years and it turned it around. worth a try