AIBU to think that there must be something more we can do for this eczema

[namechangeforthispost123]

Hello! Posting here for traffic.

Our two year old has always had mild eczema but over the last month it's got significantly worse... The itching all through the night is unbearable for us all.

We've tried all potions and lotions available both over the counter and prescribed and now the GP has said that he has no further solutions but that lots of children live with and then grow out of this type of eczema... We've booked to see a dermatologist privately but can't be seen until the New Year.

Does anyone have any advice?

10% of the management is the prescribed cream (steroids) 90% is moisturising. Make a condis crystal bath so it is light pink. After bathing apply steroid cream thinly as prescribed. Allow to absorb then apply thick layer of heavy greasy moisturiser on top. Then wet wraps. Even when it starts getting better keep going with this. Top up moisturiser as often as you can - your toddler should be greasy as a chip!

My son seemed to be stuck in a steroid cycle - it would work to clear the excema but wasn't long before the excema was back.

I made a massive change to all the chemicals that went near his skin. Got rid of washing powder completely (used soap nuts and essential oil to fragrance). Got rid of shampoo/shower gel with sls - used coconut oil in bath, and/or a beeswax emollient bar. Basically got rid of everything with artificial fragrances and bubbles for about 6 months. Also used a daily probiotic because I'd read something about gut health and excema/asthma. His excema went completely and I'm not sure what it was that worked. We've never had to use a steroid cream on him again, and we've slowly brought back some of the things I'd gotten rid of previously - we use any non-bio now and it doesn't affect his skin. Not tried biological though.

I've been using loratidine - a fairly safe over the counter antihistamine;, since the anti rejection drugs I was prescribed were obviously a no -go.
It's much worse for me in the cold. But hey not sure what causes hers. Doublebase is V good for adding moisture. BTW cetirizine makes you go to sleep. Or it does me.

Sorry wet wraps will help with the itch. They are really soothing. You can google how to do it on National Eczema.org.

A couple of days won't be sufficient. You need to stop potential allergens for a number of weeks as reactions on the skin can persist for some time after exposure. There is also often a delayed reaction of 3-5 days from exposure so it can be very hard to pin down the cause.

You need a referral for allergy testing.

You can also try bleach baths.

Can you think of anything she has eaten a lot of since the flare up began? Tomatoes, strawberries...?

The only ointment that worked for me is called Flucinar. It’s Polish but has worked a miracle on everyone I have introduced it to. My friend’s child had severe eczema on his eyelids to the point he could open them and it cleared it up within a week.
Everything I was prescribed was too thick and made me want to scratch it all off like my skin was suffocating. Oat baths are also very soothing and I like Sympathy or Dream cream from Lush.

My 18mo LG suffers with eczema and it can be awful!
Hope you manage to find find trigger/s and hopefully nip it in the bud

Poor thing, that looks sore.

In my experience medical treatments are spectacularly poor at treating eczema. We have a long way to go before we are able to truly solve it. I was caught in a cycle of bleeding painful raw and itchy eczema that would temporarily be alleviated by steroids, only for it to reappear with a vengeance every time I eased off the cream. It seemed there was no cure, only a very inadequate treatment.

This will totally go against the MN orthodoxy and is a non-approved opinion on here, but is borne out of experience. I strongly recommend you see a homeopath for individualised treatment. Within two months of starting treatment I had weaned off steroids and had perfectly healed skin with not a single bit of eczema. Have stayed that way for more than 7 years now. I have no idea how it worked - and accept that it ‘shouldn’t’ have done under current medical knowledge, but it did, despite very low expectations on my part. Give it a go.

Can not recommend highly enough bleach baths- was our saving grace, and recommended by the dermatologist. Also wet wraps- much easier now as you can buy suits to put on overnight.

Have you bought anthing new in the past month, new sofa, new carpets etc.

Triggers can be anything.
Even certain dyes in clothes.

Think of anything new.
I can't understand your gp though, he needs investigating without private costs.

SBC collagen gel used to ease my son's eczema (QVC)

I haven’t read the full thread as there’s so much and it’s late. Lots of great things to try have already been suggested!
Throwing another into the ring - if she wears fleecey pyjamas - stop. The polyester doesn’t help at the best of times, but the overheating when all snug in the winter duvet with the heating on at this time of year would play havoc with my daughter’s eczema!

Hey op!
For my daughter we also give max dose piriton daily, she gets all over moisturise with Zerobase, we use zeroderm ointment as soap substitute. We don't add anything to the bath apart from Hydromol. For hair washing we have to do this over bath/sink as she can't have any shampoo in bath water.

We have steroid creams for breaks in skin. She wears comfifast garments to bed to stop her being able to scratch, they also help hold the moisturiser on last at night.

If she has broken skin in the joints I can redolent Haelan tape it's good for covering sores in creases in the joints.

As for washing, we had to switch to a washing gel as the powder leaves residue on the clothing and bedding. No fabric conditioner as a pp has said too. All bedding and clothing to be cotton also. We don't have a radiator on in her bedroom and I try to have the window open for about 15 mins before she goes to bed to cool the room right down.

Hope some of this helps a bit! If I can think of anything else I'll come back!

We also get Fucibet cream sometimes this has an antibiotic in it as well as steroid, she's using this just now behind her ears as they are weeping. Dermovate and I can't remember off the top of my head the name of the other one. I think it could be Eumovate but I could have that wrong she has tried so many. We actually moisturise up to 7 times a day as recommended on her treatment plan. If you go swimming you should actually be applying a base layer of whatever emollient your using before going in the pool as this protects the skin from the chlorine. We do a full body with zerobase before going in. We found that diprobase made my daughters worse it made it very red and angry so you might need to change your moisturiser too x

@summertimerolls

I completely agree about Facebook groups...

Until it comes to this topic!

The British Association of Dermatologists denied TSW (Topical Steroid Withdrawal) existed until this year. Now they have published (Jan/Sept 2021) new information on it. GP's still largely are unaware of the huge danger over prescribed steroid creams do. My husband is also a doctor.

[quote happydramatic]@summertimerolls

I completely agree about Facebook groups...

Until it comes to this topic!

The British Association of Dermatologists denied TSW (Topical Steroid Withdrawal) existed until this year. Now they have published (Jan/Sept 2021) new information on it. GP's still largely are unaware of the huge danger over prescribed steroid creams do. My husband is also a doctor.[/quote]
Fair enough- but I would still suggest finding information from more reputable sources than Facebook groups!

I developed eczema in my early twenties, never had it as a child. It took me about a year of it getting progressively worse to figure out it was caused by wheat/gluten. I cut it out of my diet and after about 2 weeks, the eczema started clearing up, and 15 years later it hasn’t come back.

Can see this is 7 pages long so really I’m just coming onto to reiterate a couple of things that have likely been said already:

Allergies - there is no possible way you will know if or what she is allergic to without having proper testing done. Arbitrarily stopping one thing for a little while is not going to get you anywhere. Like you, my GP just basically shrugged after a while with DS’s eczema. Wouldn’t even refer him. So we paid for one private appointment and it turned out he was allergic to a whole host of random things that needed to be cut out. We would NEVER have identified his allergies.

Second thing about a proper appointment is that the doctor identified a bacterial infection caused from all the scratching. We needed Fucibet cream which I think is anti fungal and antibacterial. Then after that we were instructed to hit any flare ups hard with steroid cream for ten days - even after the initial eczema is gone from the surface it doesn’t mean it’s cleared up. Then after the 10 days of steroid cream, moisturisers of your choice.

Eczema needs a clear plan to stick to. I had also tried all the creams under the sun but until you know what is causing it, it will be impossible to get under control.

I really feel for you and your DD because my DS was the same and it took sustained action repetitively.

[quote happydramatic]@summertimerolls

I completely agree about Facebook groups...

Until it comes to this topic!

The British Association of Dermatologists denied TSW (Topical Steroid Withdrawal) existed until this year. Now they have published (Jan/Sept 2021) new information on it. GP's still largely are unaware of the huge danger over prescribed steroid creams do. My husband is also a doctor.[/quote]

The problem with Facebook groups is that information is passed around that is not correct and information from doctors gets conflated.

Yes, there is definitely a problem with over-using steroids for long periods. BUT that doesn't mean that steroids are bad and should not be used. The impact of disinformation means that many parents go through hoops to avoid the use of steroids in many cases prolonging the child's suffering.

As many others have correctly pointed out cases like the OPs need a steroid cream of the appropriate strength to be used for a short period to get the eczema under control and to be used as soon a flare-up is detected. This must be used in combination with an emollient routine that works for the child's skin. What works for one doesn't necessarily suit another, it requires trial and error to find the right one.

I had horrendous eczema as a child. It was painful and very uncomfortable when at its worst. Add in the unkindness of children and many adults that should know better (though hopefully times are more enlightened now) and it's a really difficult thing for a child to put up with.

I've followed the above with both my DC who have inherited my atopic skin and thankfully their experiences have been nothing like mine.

The only thing that helped me when I was 90% covered in eczema was a high dose of vitamin d, only done with drs supervision.

Dermasilk leggings and tops, (eBay). Silk wicks heat and sweat away from skin.
I used to have to wear a silk helmet when my face and neck were really bad.

@Onthedunes

Have you bought anthing new in the past month, new sofa, new carpets etc.

Triggers can be anything.
Even certain dyes in clothes.

Think of anything new.
I can't understand your gp though, he needs investigating without private costs.

SBC collagen gel used to ease my son's eczema (QVC)

The dyes in clothes was one of my sons main triggers. Red dyes seemed to be the worst. We had to wash all his new clothes before he wore them and stuck to muted colours or the organic brands.

Excezma clothing like silk trousers might help. And scratch sleeves

Marking as DD has less severe but long standing itchy rash issu3s