To take my 18month old DS to the local PANDA unit tomorrow

[Elsabean]

He has had really severe nappy rash for over 4 weeks. By severe I mean multiple ulcerated patches that bleed when he is wiped. I have taken him to the GP 3 times and he has had 3 different creams and 2 oral antibiotics. I have also tried all the usual barrier creams. Initially I tried to give him more nappy-free time but now he scratches himself and the area just bleeds. Your opinions and suggestions much appreciated as I feel as if we are getting nowhere and it must be so painful for him. Thanks in advance

I have no advice but yes I would take him, you've tried gp and got no success you need to step up to the next level now.
Must be horrible for him and for you to see him in pain.

What's a panda unit? Assume you have treated for thrush already?

Seconding thrush treatment, Canesten worked for us, good luck OP

Definitely go for another opinion and a different treatment option. It needs sorting, poor little man.
Have you tried changing nappy brands?
DS used to react to pampers and huggies but was fine with Aldi and Tesco cheap own brands, so it could be something in the nappy triggering a contact dermatitis?

Also - Love the idea of visiting Pandas, sure to put a smile on his face, even if only briefly.

Thanks for all your rapid replies. The PANDA Unit is the paediatric and neonatal ward attached to a&e. Yes have treated him for thrush - I started with Canestan before the first GP visit and each of the 3 different creams that the GPs have prescribed have had an anti fungal in them. No improvement at all.

Has the GP taken a swab?

If its not thrush and is just bad nappy rash, stop using wipes or water to clean with and use aqueous cream or olive oil and wipe off gently with loo roll. Apply a thick layer of metanium and don't wipe it all off at every change unless it's really pooey, just flick bits off and reapply more metanium. If it's just a wet nappy dont clean and just put a new nappy on. My ds has hirschsprungs disease so can get horrendous nappy rash as his poo is so toxic but following this routine that the hospital taught us his bum is looking fine! Good luck

Definitely go. Are you using baby wipes? I found that switching to plain old cotton wool and water really helped. Also, with the barrier creams, just using a thin layer as the area needs to "breathe". Hope that it clears up soon.

I think I would be pushing for a dermatology clinic appointment now to be honest.
You are right to take him in and ask for their help in getting his skin sorted. Wishing you lots of luck x

Have you tried changing the brand of nappies that you use. We moved from cloth nappies to disposable when dd was about 8 months old and she spent a year with constant nappy rash/thrush. We changed nappy brands and it practically cleared overnight.

I would definitely take him, hope you manage to get the poor little chap sorted soon OP

I've just started using a prescribed steroid ointment with antifungal properties on my 18month old after trying everthing else; cloth nappies, metanium, no wipes, hours of nappy free time etc. After weeks it was getting worse, now after 2 days of the steroid ointment it is improving. Were the 'creams' you got steroids?

You could try cloth nappies sometime the chemicals in disposable nappies make bums very sore.

I think getting him seen is a good idea if it's as serious as you say.

My own 2p :), mine were very sensitive to petroleum derived products so sudocrem, metanium, e45 etc made things much, much worse, to the point of bleeding.

I switched to neals yard (olive oil based) and burts bees (beeswax based). Cost me a fortune but never had nappy rash again :)

You can get trial cloth packs from a lot of websites, fillyourpants.com does a good one, you could also look for a local nappy library.

Also raw egg white works a treat I Found!

Definitely take him, poor thing, when my little one had really awful blistering nappy rash we switched to Naty Nappies (sainsburys stock them) which are chemical free and really helped him, we also used canesten thrush cream, sudocream, water and cotton wool rather than wipes and salt in his bath. Hope he's better soon, nappy rash is awful.

I never tried but also heard raw egg white works. A childrens charity worker who had seen neglected children with horrendous nappy rash swore it was the only thing they found worked. Hope he gets better soon, poor mite.

My dc has what you describe as ulcerated patches on his bottom. Unbeknown to me it was impetigo, very contagious and inadvertently spread by me wiping him.

Posted too soon, no patches elsewhere so I was very surprised, antibiotics did nothing, cornflour paste using Vaseline I found under homeopathic remedies. Hope your dc improves soon.

Dermol 500 worked for us, it's a cleanser that has antiseptic in it. We used it 3-4 times daily along with hydrocortisone and hydromol, plus antibiotics.

You're right to get this sorted, when eczema gets infected kids go down hill VERY quick (as we discovered, it's less than 12 hours & then they get v poorly)

Good luck.

Try extra virgin coconut oil.

Honey is also good for open wounds, it also has natural antibacterial properties, downside is the stickiness. Check with a medical professional before use at that age.

If you have time, do a single patch test with all the different creams and oils that people are suggesting inside the crease of his elbow before you try on the sore area, to rule out any that will irritate. Also make sure you're not mixing them by using one then a few hours later using another because that can cause a worse reaction.

I hope you find the right ointment soon, poor little chap

Thank you everyone. I will bring him in the morning. We have been using a mixture of cloth and disposables and have noticed no improvement with either. We will start using cotton wool and water to clean. Some of his cres have had hydrocortisone in them so I know tht side has been covered. Thanks for the swab suggestion - I can ask them about that tomorrow.

Creams not cres!