To go private for baby's eczema? Recommendations needed

[soontobeamum1982]

I am London based and my baby has developed terrible eczema. We are on a waiting list for allergy testing as it began with weaning and we are dairy free, but there's a strong family history on the dad's side and it's getting worse by the day.

I want to go private. DP not so sure.

Has anyone done this, and with good results? Can you be referred back into the NHS after the first couple of consultations?

How did you choose your consultant for a private appointment? Should we go with the head of the service at the Evelina, which is where we'll be referred through the NHS?

Used Dermol? Cream plus the bath dermol too. Had amazing effect for us and that was after all sorts of creams antibiotics etc. Is there a nurse lead eczema clinic in any hospital near you? They’re good.also used those body suits/baby gros from Derma silk - really helped with sleeping. Your GP will prescribe them if you’re firm with him/her - they’re expensive. DS had awful awful eczema that dermol controlled

DS had really bad eczema as a baby we were wet wrapping. He had 2 different types of cream one for day and one for night. We went on holiday when he was 2 and forgot to pack the day cream. By the end of the week his eczema was almost gone. The allergy had been to the actual cream.

Thanks everyone - lots of good advice here, but bit overwhelmed by the range of options and the fact that it's a real trial and error.

We are moisturising constantly and so far are finding epaderm ointment the best, but it only calms it, it doesn't clear it. Aveeno did nothing, cetraben worked for a while then stopped, hyromol inexplicably made her whole body so dry it was like holding sawdust - even in the areas previously unaffected.

She is dry all over but the bad outbreaks are on her face and neck and behind the knees. Her stomach has smaller spotty patches but is basically managed.

She is 7.5 months old and all this started with weaning - but that was also the time that the weather got really cold and the central heating got cranked up so I'm wondering if there's a link there.

Like others, I'm also finding the GP is leaning towards a 'trial and error, she'll grow out of it' approach, but my other half has severe eczema in his 40s so chances are she might need help managing this for decades and we want to set her on the right path now.

We have booked an appointment for next week with the head of hte paed dermatology service we're on the waiting list for anyway. Hopefully that will help us get somewhere.

I hope others have some success. If you do, please share your stories. It's horrid seeing little ones in distress.

Is she itchy too? We've been advised to use the steroid cream eumovate til his skin looks clear then hydrocortisone until he stops scratching so wonder if you need a steroid cream

Hello we have a little boy 2.5 months and he has recently started with eczema out of nowhere. No eczema in the family so it's a total shock.
Here is a picture. We are using double base and these patches keep appearing.
Using hydrocortisone to try and clear it but new patches appear.
Should we go back to the GP is this normal for eczema?
We've tried diprobase and diprobase ointment. It started on his cheeks in January and has gradually moved to his body. No signs of stopping.
Can anyone advise me?

Years! Sorry I mean 2 years 5 months!

@corn I would definitely go back to the gp.. that looks hideous poor thing.
Both my children have it and I use a combination of children’s farm and q.v. wash and moisturiser. Sometimes a steroid With small flare up. In fairness both mine have allergies... one carries an epi and the other one doesn’t have the need!(apparently) has he been tested for allergies??

Cornforth

Has GP confirmed it's exzema? Just that it looks like when my DD had pityriasis rosea. Not a medical expert at all but just wanted to mention.

Oatmeal baths, food diary and pre&probiotics.

Baby may have an issue with absorption of nutrients; and low gut flora, a common cause of allergy.

This is conjecture not diagnosis btw.

Biokult make an infant probiotic it’s fully trialled and proven etc x

@CornforthWhite absolutely go back to the GP. Ask to be referred to a hospital dermatologist. Unfortunately from my experience with my son we found that the GP’s had no real clue how to treat eczema aside from a trial and error approach - which is fine with mild eczema but in my son’s case it led to infected eczema that spread across his face and body very quickly. It looked like - well it was - raw skin. His skin bled when touched. Our mistake was waiting around and now we know to treat any signs of eczema aggressively before it spreads.

Also to the OP. if you are based in London please google Dr Atherton. He helped my son when the GP and local hospital dermatologist failed him. He doesn’t mess around and my son’s skin was clear within a few days. It does try to come back - we’ve had lots of flare ups since first seeing Dr Atherton, but now we know to attack the eczema before it gets out of control. Good luck - I had no idea how awful eczema could be before my son’s recent experience.

The GP said not to bother with allergy testing as it can suggest allergies when none exist.
His eczema has come totally out of nowhere. No change in diet. The only thing that happened is that he needed antibiotics for an ear infection and then this all spiralled from there. But that was 2 months ago now.
I will book an appointment with the GP on Tuesday. His arm isn't as red now after some hydrocortisone but I'm needing to use that frequently. And if I wait 7 days between the series of applications needed to calm his skin down it's back to being as red as the picture before the 7 days is up if that makes sense! Sorry this is all so new to me I'm not managing it very well.

We also saw Dr David Atherton. I asked my GP to refer us because I'd read about him. He was terrific. I'll never forget seeing women in the waiting area who had flown in from Qatar and other far flung places specifically to see him. Best money I ever spent.

Good luck - bad eczema in infants is very, very hard on all of you.

Different solutions work for different eczema sufferers but following a course we attended we do the following. We use oilatum bath additive in our daughter's bath and then as soon as she comes out and is still damp we smother her in 50/50 ointment (50% liquid paraffin 50% white soft paraffin ointment). We also use Child's Farm products but only the shampoo and conditioner for washing her hair. We tried every type of other moisturiser going and lots of different strength steroids but that combination of 50:50 and oilatum is the only strategy that completely keeps it under control (and it was quite bad). Just wanted to give you this combination as a suggestion as the doctor didn't tell us to do this, it was the specialist on the workshop we went to.

@dragon looking at google it does look a little like that. It's not behind his knees and elbows and 'classic' eczema places however the GP said it was eczema.
It started on his cheeks and grew from there so I'm really not sure.
Thank you everyone for the recommendations. I will see about an appointment with Dr Atherton if we can engineer a trip to London!

Another vote here for the 50/50 oilatum combo. We were advised 10 minute bath every night, smother in detail first, then like warm bath with oilatum then 50/50 straight after. If using steroids then they should go on 30 mins after the 50/50. The detrmatologist prescribed strong steroids to start with, betamethasone for body and eumovate for face daily. We are now down to hydrocortisone twice a week. It really worked for ds after years of trial and error.

We went through this with DS1. We got fobbed off by several GPs and although referred to a dermatologist eventually the wait was just too much - out poor 6 month old was suffering badly and none of us were getting any sleep. Paying for a private dermatologist was the best money I’ve ever spent - we only saw her once, although she referred us for allergy tests on the NHS as well. She gave us a stronger steroid cream (elocon) that GPs don’t prescribe. We put it on that night and he woke up with the eczema almost totally gone. We had to keep using it until we got the allergy results but that would have taken months on the NHS.

I can look up her name but I suspect Brighton hospital is a little too far for you to travel and there must be some good pediatric dermatologists closer to home for you. Good luck.

I second dr adam fox. Saved my boy who was 90% covered by eczema in a week. Attacked the eczema with steroids. Now its under control with a weaker steroid but rarely used.