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Behaviour/development

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Original poster

Calling all eczema mums!! help!?!

56 replies

MrsRV · 07/02/2015 13:20

oh god. totally failing!!! 9mo has always had dry skin & prone to rashes etc. i had been using myown double base on her as i thought it was harmless. apparently i shouldn't have been doing this :-(

after the little patch of eczema on her chest & around her neck didn't go i went to drs. nurse gave us oilatum & e45. one or both caused a massive flare up all over her tummy/chest/neck/back so stopped using.

went back to using very little doublebase, improved a bit but not much & flare up didn't appear to be as bad but still very much there. should have gone back to drs but i returned to work after mat leave & lack of sleep led to irresponsible decision of "it'll be ok".

used a fair old whack of doublebase lastnight & another massive flare up so inmy sleep deprived & desperate state i used a little betnovate on her this morning which of course has had instant results but i know i shouldn't have done this and i'm really worrying about it.

so now i'm trying to get something lanolin free to put on her - is there any thing i can buy today (as opposed to Internet purchase!) that anyone can recommend for babies? ??

feeling awful.

OP posts:

QuietNinjaTardis · 08/02/2015 07:16

Betnovate won't hurt on a one off application but you definitely need to go to gp and get some creams prescribed to try and maybe a milder steroid cream to get flare ups under control.
An extra rinse at the end of the wash cycle and nothing in the bath apart from something oily. You can get aveeno bath oil. Don't use normal baby washes get dermol or cetreben or a soap substitute prescribed (not aqueous cream)
Buy some scratchsleeves. (I've got some 3-6 month ones that fitted dd til she was a year but she's tiny, if you have a little dd then you're welcome to have them)

QuietNinjaTardis · 08/02/2015 07:17

Moisturise as many times as poss during the day but minimum twice a day. More if the flare up is bad.

PragmaticWench · 08/02/2015 07:19

You could also try Scratchsleeves to help prevent damage from scratching or rubbbing, they have silk over the hands.

polkadotdelight · 08/02/2015 07:23

We are using Epaderm 3 in 1. Its for use as an emoliant cream, bath cream and wash. DS eczema isn't too bad though.

LackingCommonSense · 08/02/2015 07:39

I've recently started using Aveeno baby eczema cream on DS recommended on here and it's amazing. Need to visit gp and see if I can get it on prescription.

was prescribed doublebase and a mild steroid previously but Aveeno is better!

Goldmandra · 08/02/2015 09:27

Don't feel guilty for using the Betnovate once!

DO make sure you see someone who specialises in eczema. It's easy for parents to be fobbed off with something that doesn't work brilliantly in the hope that the baby will grow out of it soon. Eczema doesn't just itch; it hurts. Sleep deprivation can be devastating and your baby deserves to get effective treatment.

EssexMummy123 · 08/02/2015 10:32

I use the Aveeno baby emollient and Aveeno baby eczema cream - it's the one thing we keep coming back to - i would be dubious about Salcura because of the amount of essential oils which i think can be quite strong.

Aveeno baby isn't sold in the UK and therefore not available on prescription - normal Aveeno is though.

This is where i get the Aveeno baby creams from www.soft-skin.co.uk/proddetail.php?prod=AB107

EssexMummy123 · 08/02/2015 10:35

Oh and i found our local hospitals dermatology dept to be totally and utterly useless (Basildon) - it wasn't until we switched to Aveeno and saw a paed allergies consultant that we started to make progress.

Original poster

MrsRV · 08/02/2015 19:27

went to a walk in centre today so just put her in the bath with water only, then smothered her arms & legs (clear but quite dry) in Aveeno & hydrocortisone on the hugely inflamed torso & back. nurse also gave us piriton which appears to have knocked her out rather than wriggling around & scratching! the aveeno seems to doing wonders for my cracked & sore fingers too!! Fingers crossed. As a child i had wet bandages put on me, rashes everytime i even looked at a nice bath/shower/moisteriser product, sore, cracked & itchy skin pretty much from birth... still get breakouts now!! i don't want the same for my bubs :-(

OP posts:

Gileswithachainsaw · 08/02/2015 19:35

I use a'kin replenishing body moist.

It's amazing.

I also use vegan shampoo conditioner and shower gel. All SLS and parabans free and vegan.

also cut dairy.

took five years to find the combination and right products but so worth it
dd is 8 now and it's much more controlled than it used to be.

look at mypure. Co. UK

or naturism. com

NellyTheElephant · 08/02/2015 21:12

I was coming on to recommend aveeno, but see you have already got it - stick with it. It worked wonders for my DS. he got to the point where he would be in tears if I wanted even just to get him to wash his hands as the skin on the back of his knuckles and wrists would be red / cracked bleeding. Aveeno worked wonders, within a few weeks his skin all over totally calmed down. If it does help clear it up, then keep on using it twice a day to stop it coming back. I now use Aveeno regularly as a face cream myself as I was prone to dry flaky scaly patches - I find it amazing and cannot believe that until recently it was just a cheap cream I'd never heard of......

GP had previously prescribed other creams (Epaderm, diprobase, cetraben), none of which worked anywhere near as well as Aveeno and also were thick and hard to absorb, which would annoy DS, whereas Aveeno just goes straight in.

NickyEds · 09/02/2015 20:44

Another Aveeno user here, by far the best moisturiser. Ask for it on prescription- i didn't realise I could get it on prescription until I'd spent a small fortune on it!

NickyEds · 09/02/2015 20:47

Oh and in the end steroids really didn't work with ds and he now has ProTopic ointment and it's been fantastic. His eczema has gone. Completely. He gets little patches every now and then but a small smear of the protopic clears it up over night.

DonnaJo123 · 08/05/2015 16:19

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by MNHQ. Here's a link to our Talk Guidelines.

feekerry · 09/05/2015 18:06

Our gp recently prescribed certaben (?) but it caused a massive flair up. Worse than ever. Gp has now prescribed aveeno cream and aveeno bath oil and 2 days in huge improvement. The cream is light and absorbs v fast. Currently apply 4 times a day. Gp also prescribed piriton to be given in the evening. One standard dose

dayspringjubilee · 14/05/2015 10:44

Aveeno hasn't done much for my 4mo daughter. Steroid was amazing but can't keep her on it. Now I apply Hydromol 4x a day and it's ok, but just firefighting really. I tried coconut oil for a few days, but that dried her out terribly. She scratches and rubs her face constantly and screams whenever I put sleeves on her :( Apparently the next step is for me to give up dairy, as we are ebf. I totally don't want to, but I'm convinced she's allergic. Paediatrician told me to give the Hydromol a couple weeks, so I guess I'll decide soon. Ugh.

PlayingHouse · 14/05/2015 17:55

Avennoo was rubbish for dd2 and me. Too thin to do any real good.

I have found;

Dermal 600 bath oil
Hydromol ointment (not cream)
Combination of elocon on the worst parts (but used with breaks in between) and a mild hydrocortisone for the face are what works for us.

What is the pro topic treatment? Is this new?

PlayingHouse · 14/05/2015 17:58

I would never bath myself or dd2 in 'water only'.

That's the quickest way to dry the skin out

You need bath oil. Ask for Dermal. Don't let them fob you off with oilatum.

PlayingHouse · 14/05/2015 18:00

And don't ever use any soap - including 'Simple'.

TonarinoNeko1 · 15/05/2015 10:46

dayspringjubilee - your situation sounds almost exactly like me and my DD 5 years ago - good eczema days, bad days, fumbling around to find something that works. DD developed cradle cap at 6 weeks which deteriorated into red patches over her neck and face, and by 4 months old she was covered in eczema. It breaks my heart to remember her suffering even now. But, now at 5.5 she is a healthy, happy schoolgirl who only has occasional flares in her elbow and knee creases. What turned things around was getting a referral to an excellent (sadly, they are not all so) dermatologist on the NHS who gave her a RAST (blood test to diagnose allergies, not the health-food shop ones which are unreliable) which showed an allergy to cows' milk and egg white. DD was ebf to 6 months too but my dairy intake was aggravating her condition (it seemed like anything I ate was, tbh) so I was recommended to stop (I had lost a stone and the dermatologist said she was worried about my mental and physical health, the eczema had taken such a toll) and switched to Nutramigen, a prescription only dairy-free formula. The dermo also put my DD on a regimen of steroid creams - even for the face - emollients and bath oils (Hydromol or Aveeno worked best) and honestly, the combination of that and being dairy free transformed her in two weeks - sleeping through the night, not scratching, not looking poorly (kids in the supermarket commenting). The advice I would give any eczema parent is DON'T be afraid of the steroid (under medical supervision of course). I know there is bad publicity about skin-thinning but this is only potent steroids (like Elecon) over a long period of time and not treating the skin and leaving it broken and itchy thins it much more, as well as letting allergens in and potentially prolonging their suffering for longer. Even now as soon as I see a flare up about to start I zap it with some Daktacort or Hydrocortisone 1% which is fine over longer treatment (she has no scarring/thinning at all despite using potent steroids early in her treatment). DD still sees her dermo every six months to review and the doctor said she is a success story because we followed the treatment at an early age - early intervention is key. Sorry for the long post - I am a bit of an eczema evangelist!

Greenstone · 15/05/2015 12:42

I'm so sorry to hijack but does anyone know about eczema on the eyelids?

I have a 6 month old who frequently gets little rashes on her eyelids and I can only think it must be eczema? The rest of her skin is clear. She has an egg allergy and I felt she might be dairy intolerant as this rash coincided with the introduction of some formula in her diet. Over the last 6 or so days she's had no formula at all and the rash cleared so felt it must be this. However this morning it was back again and quite itchy looking - no formula to blame and I hadn't had any dairy either. We're waiting on allergy testing but the appointment is ages away. Any thoughts?

beebop100 · 16/05/2015 10:37

Aveeno here too, oilatum made it worse, love the Aveeno cream that we get on prescription and just started using the Aveeno body wash too which is working great.

PlayingHouse · 16/05/2015 15:57

eczema on the eyelids is a common problem.

DD2 (4yo) and I both get it.

Go to GP because it might need a mild hydrocortisone to clear it up.

PlayingHouse · 16/05/2015 15:59

Just to add DD2 occasionally wakes up with swollen eyes because of the eczema on her lids so I wouldn't wait for allergy tests, go to GP

lazyfrog · 18/05/2015 20:03

My son has always had very dry skin but since the warmer weather we've started getting eczema flare=ups for the first time. I'm using cetraben like its going out of fashion and mild steroid cream as needed.

What should I be doing about his hair? Everyone says no soap which is fine but now I'm paranoid about his baby shampoo too.

What is everyone else doing hairwise?

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